Financing arrangements conducted through “Initial Coin Offerings” (ICOs) are as a rule constructed in such a way that they are not subject to any form or regulation, and they are also not subject to supervision. Investors and consumers do not enjoy a comparable degree of protection as they would with regulated products or products issued by supervised entities.
Under certain circumstances, an ICO may however constitute a financial service requiring a licence, or may fall within the scope of another supervisory law with regard to investor protection. This must however be checked on a case-by-case basis. Information can be found on the FMA website at: FinTech Navigator
Generally ICOs are always of a highly speculative nature, and accordingly are considered to be risky financial transactions. The material risks associated with investments in an ICO for wholesale investors and consumers are listed.
Further information:
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FMA Focus on Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) (Format: pdf, Size: 228,2 KB, Language: English)