Joining the ICO market is creating the equivalent of an IPO for stocks. ICOs are used strictly for brand-new cryptocurrency projects. They act as a way to build investor interest. Almost every cryptocurrency project you know nowadays has gone through the ICO phase.

If you’re looking to create a brand new coin, app, or crypto-related service, you can use an ICO to allocate funds. Think of it as a way to generate money that can be used to further your projects, regardless of what they are. Without an ICO, most projects will dwindle away and fall into obscurity. You’ll have to give investors something in return, though, which often comes in the form of cheap tokens. Ethereum even had an ICO in 2014 to raise money, generating over $18M as a result.