Live data from Hacker News

Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

nytimes.com

151–160 of 310 posts

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#151
Last month, a small team of computer engineers in Lithuania raised $14 million in 45 minutes by selling a coin, known as Mysterium, that is intended to give access to an encrypted online data service that is still being built.

There has to be more background to this? Why would they ever bother building the service if they have the 14M in cash?

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#152

I am amazed that in 2017, there is still people qualifying Bitcoin or Ethereum of ponzi schemes. Crypto currencies have a lot of problems (technical, economical, philosophical, ICO are insanes) but saying they are ponzi schemes is plain wrong. And it just takes 5 minutes of reading on Ponzi Schemes signs and basic knowledges of how those currencies work to understand why.

They are as much a Ponzi scheme as gold (which has almost no practical use) and ugly paintings that cost millions http://www.therichest.com/luxury/most-expensive/10-ugly-piec... If expensive ugly paintings are not a Ponzi scheme, then cryptocurrencies are not a Ponzi scheme.

Ether is more like oil - it is a fuel source used to power smart contracts, token sales, and autonomous organizations.

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#153

I am amazed that in 2017, there is still people qualifying Bitcoin or Ethereum of ponzi schemes. Crypto currencies have a lot of problems (technical, economical, philosophical, ICO are insanes) but saying they are ponzi schemes is plain wrong. And it just takes 5 minutes of reading on Ponzi Schemes signs and basic knowledges of how those currencies work to understand why.

they resemble ponzi schemes in that you get in early and benefit as more people adopt it. further, like all fiat currency, there is no "underlying" value, so your success depends entirely on how many other people adopt it. so, to me, it does resemble a ponzi scheme. my guess is that you take issue with the connotation of that word, implying its a scam. i dont think it is, but i do think it resembles a ponzi scheme.

One of the reasons Fiat currency has value is because its the only currency that the U.S. Government accepts debt and tax payments in. That is tremendous power and authority behind the currency.

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

they resemble ponzi schemes in that you get in early and benefit as more people adopt it. further, like all fiat currency, there is no "underlying" value, so your success depends entirely on how many other people adopt it. so, to me, it does resemble a ponzi scheme. my guess is that you take issue with the connotation of that word, implying its a scam. i dont think it is, but i do think it resembles a ponzi scheme.

One of the reasons Fiat currency has value is because its the only currency that the U.S. Government accepts debt and tax payments in. That is tremendous power and authority behind the currency.

Exactly!

It is quite rare in history that a fiat currency was put in place, that didn't have a corresponding broad based tax in order to enforce its use and give the issuer, usually a sovereign or government, an advantage in being the source of the fiat.

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They are as much a Ponzi scheme as gold (which has almost no practical use) and ugly paintings that cost millions http://www.therichest.com/luxury/most-expensive/10-ugly-piec... If expensive ugly paintings are not a Ponzi scheme, then cryptocurrencies are not a Ponzi scheme.

Ether is more like oil - it is a fuel source used to power smart contracts, token sales, and autonomous organizations.

This analogy is not accurate.

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#156
post #137

ICO are the best thing that ever happened. This is no different then kickstarter.com started. People where saying the same things. People put up lot of BS project and they got funded, in time these kind of project will fail on there own. This is just the start, no government or bank would have supported such system. For once, the small guy can participate in this market. I would have loved to invest in amazon, facebo…

> I would have loved to invest in amazon, facebook, etc when they where private.

I'm sure if you wen't to them then and said here is money plz give share they would have considered it. Everybody want's to have gotten into the big giants when they were small - but there are many small cap/penny stock companies you can invest in now ... yet people don't. There are even non listed share trading options. And the reason is because hindsight is 20/20 ... it takes experienced and diligent investors to make good investments that beat the market - it's exceptionally rare.

ICOs are not like getting into Amazon/Facebook/etc early. It's like penny stocks or worse. Could it pay out big ? Sure ... why not. So can the lottery. But there is no enforcement on any of these things in the real world, no shareholder rights and no protections.

> People put up lot of BS project and they got funded, in time these kind of project will fail on there own.

People keep funding these BS projects and loosing their money though. Let's not pretend nobody is loosing, and I'm actually pretty sure with kick-starter garbage most of the time nobody is winning.

> For once, the small guy can participate in this market.

I'm not sure what market you think you were excluded from, but I doubt this was the case.

> You had to have the connection and access .. here the little guy in columbia or Africa has the same access to such a deal

... this is just wrong.

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why does every company need its own stock certificates? It's a token representing ownership.

ICOs almost universally don't represent ownership.

but what about smart contracts !? (/s)

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#158

I have a fetish for watching complicated court cases play through. What you realize is a judge in a courtroom has a lot of power. They can take your money, freedom or even kids. However, if I had few hundred thousand in Ethereum encrypted placed into a few random anonymous git hub repros, well, the government can't take it. It is truly yours. No one can take it. That must be horrifying proposition for (some) governme…

They can throw you to jail for contempt until you give up that money though.

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#159
post #143

>the inability to control people. What's horrifying is people thinking like that. We live in societies with rules, with laws that we have agreed upon, and are, for the most part, fair. These same laws and this same governement protects you, gives you at least some basic services. And you're advocating for not holding up your end of the bargain, and removing one big part of the punishment for not holding it up. To peo…

Governments do not protect everyone, or provide basic services to everyone, equally. Also, unless you were there for the revolution, you didn't agree to the laws of the land where you happened to be born. As an anarchist, I don't find my relationship with my government to be one that I would enter into willingly if I were given the freedom not to. Instead, I live under the constant threat of state-sanctioned violence for any act of civil disobedience or political dissent on my part.

> "For the good of all of us."

Yeah, so who are you to decide what is good for everyone? That way lies tyranny, and for everyone but the tyrants, slavery. But really, you are advocating for less freedom for a specific group of people, so I suppose that what you have put forth is a pro-slavery argument. I pray that you reconsider your position.

Re: Easiest Path to Riches on the Web? An Initial Coin Offering

#160

The seems to be a dearth of proper English in this thread, and poor grammar. If you're advocating for proponents of a technology, please proofread your posts to earn a modicum of credibility if you've got the time.

> The seems to be a dearth of proper English in this thread, and poor grammar.

I almost want to upvote for irony.

Post reply on HN