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      "body": "“Someone who’s been investing in private equity deals for a while, or any private equity firm, will tell you that liquidity’s not going to come for three to five years,” Asman notes. “With most security tokens in the US, you basically have a liquid asset after a 12-month lock-up.”",
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      "permlink": "the-year-ahead-the-security-token-is-ready-for-its-close-up",
      "title": "The Year Ahead: The Security Token is Ready for Its Close Up",
      "body": "###### *By Anne Szustek Talbot*\n\n![1_Nfxrs1dyiSyWTM7nZR_vag.gif](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmafLox33yXJArtL59NmAxWvdgX7mUCcb4Jm636Qa9WzBg/1_Nfxrs1dyiSyWTM7nZR_vag.gif)\n\n###### *Kim Jong-un’s bodyguards jog alongside his car — reported on by The Telegraph. / gfycat*\n\nSpend any amount of time on digital media, and you’ll find a basic story trope: “X is the new Y.” Until the advent of hit Netflix series “Orange is the New Black,” nary a season would go by without some fashion news outlet proclaiming some other hue is set to replace basic black. A smaller US metropolis with some semblance of restaurants, an art scene and semi-affordable apartment inventory? Voilà: it’s the next New York. Since trend pieces typically merit at least three examples to make the story stick, let me round out this trifecta with a cryptocurrency-specific question: Are security tokens the new crypto coin?\n\n### Understanding Security Tokens\nOver the past year or so, much has been ado about the [initial coin offering (ICO)](https://hackernoon.com/the-new-rules-of-marketing-an-ico-c163ddbc2029). During the first six months of 2018, according to Bloomberg, [ICOs raised a record $7 billion](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-02/crypto-bulls-pile-into-icos-at-record-pace-despite-bitcoin-rout). Amid the contraction seen across many cryptocurrencies during the third quarter, many would-be ICO launchers [have instead turned to private placements for fundraising](https://cryptobriefing.com/bring-back-the-ico-contrarian-view/). The security token offers a middle path for investors and startups left wary [by the PR mess left by some of the less successful ICOs to date](https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkauflin/2018/10/29/where-did-the-money-go-inside-the-big-crypto-icos-of-2017). A security token is a cryptocurrency-backed investment that offers an ownership stake in a company, not unlike a traditional equity. It offers the security of an asset-backed investment. Where it differs from the equities traded on the NYSE or Nasdaq: security tokens offer more liquidity and with the twist of being priced in cryptocurrency.\n\n>> In essence, the security token is a somewhat novel asset class that may prove appealing to longtime crypto watchers and decidedly more reserved institutional investors alike.\n\n“The easiest way to understand the security token in layman’s terms is if you had bought into an IPO 12 months ahead of the launch,” says Kyle Asman, advisor on cryptocurrency tokenization and partner and co-founder of [BX3 Capital, a business advisory firm for companies in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sectors](https://bx3.io/).\n\n![1_Wo1QHllrxI7t-H6ePSts3A.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmSGLbpdL9srRsQHzDNhku82dahybFknaCz9GnQLLizadF/1_Wo1QHllrxI7t-H6ePSts3A.png)\n##### *Image by Crypto Space Guides*\n\nCrypto tokens offer ICO backers a reward for helping a startup get off the ground. Like crypto coins, they are tradable on cryptocurrency exchanges. Unlike standard cryptocurrency coins, however, security tokens are backed by and derive their value from external, tradable assets. They check off the boxes to fulfill the [SEC’s Howey Test of being an investment contract](https://medium.com/@bx3capital/its-2018-time-for-a-new-framework-for-cryptocurrency-regulation-967a957443e5), meaning that security tokens live up to their name: They are full-fledged securities, subsequently subject to the relevant SEC rules. As an asset class, security tokens are thus free from much of [the regulatory ambiguity that weighs down other cryptocurrency investment vehicles in the US](https://blog.goodaudience.com/congress-and-cryptocurrency-99-problems-but-a-solution-aint-one-of-them-4161edfef318), meaning that they could be a game-changer for opening up accessibility to a wider pool of investors looking to shake up their usual equities portfolio.\n\nThe first question an investor may have is how do crypto security tokens differ from traditional equities. The biggest advantage of a security token has over traditional equity, says Asman, is liquidity.\n\n>>“Someone who’s been investing in private equity deals for a while, or any private equity firm, will tell you that liquidity’s not going to come for three to five years,” Asman notes. “With most security tokens in the US, you basically have a liquid asset after a 12-month lock-up.”\n\nAnother advantage of the security token over its stock-exchange cousin isn’t one with an immediate direct payoff. It’s the inherent appeal that comes from a brand-new asset class. While traditional IPOs happen all the time, only the biggest market-cap stories tend to garner any media fanfare. Security tokens, Asman points out, are still an object of curiosity for both the media and investors. The novelty can help spark attention in new issuances, spurring traction for the asset class and for cryptocurrency as a whole.\n\n![1_sDiJB1oz34zsQy_6-aT91g.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmPxZncxje8M5BYf4bKx4wrwcXw4kxQSBsebGBaTrEQCvy/1_sDiJB1oz34zsQy_6-aT91g.jpeg)\n###### *Mark Cuban response to hearing you’re a crypto skeptic / My San Antonio*\n\n### “Who’s buying it?”\nA crypto-skeptic might retort with a multi-entendre “who’s buying it?” The first answer includes [broker-dealers](https://cryptovest.com/news/interviews/cryptovest-exclusive-q-and-a-with-darren-marble-ceo-of-issuance/), for one. For at least the time being, generally access to security-token funds will have to be via buy-in to an institutional investment-backed portfolio. SEC rules at present prevent anyone who doesn’t qualify as an [accredited investor ](https://www.sec.gov/files/review-definition-of-accredited-investor-12-18-2015.pdf)— either having a net worth of at least $1 million, excluding the value of one’s primary home or having earned more than $200,000 / yr for the past two years. This stipulation effectively cuts off crypto to many retail investors. A security token-based fund might not be the best fit for risk-averse investors, such as people nearing retirement with a 60 percent allocation to bonds. “But for somebody in their 20’s or 30’s or 40’s — or even 50’s — who is approaching near peak-earning power, security tokens could be a prime choice for investment that offers explosive growth,” Asman continues.\n\nThat a crypto-based investment has the cachet to gain the attention of fund managers — much less get official billing as a security — shows that crypto is reaching maturity. It also shows promise for security tokens as being a bridge into [cryptocurrency’s general accessibility](https://hackernoon.com/how-crypto-is-like-a-spicy-tuna-roll-c1bbed4e007a) as an investment vehicle. Speaking more broadly, the relatively straitlaced security token could burnish cryptocurrency’s image as being some untamed, unregulated other. “I think that 2018’s actually ended up being the year of transition from this Wild West market into one that is regulated,” Asman notes. “The ICO boom of 2017 and its wave of projects that made capital without having anything is gone. Now people want things for their assets and real profits.”\n\n#### “That’s for the right reasons.”\n\n______________________________________________________________________________________\n\n\n![1_fYSwyGDW3w4956P4C77jWQ.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmYKob3TqACDCNwud9jMPsyZMAuzThR5rc3NjRVQq4wi3L/1_fYSwyGDW3w4956P4C77jWQ.jpeg)\n\n###### *[Anne Szustek Talbot](https://steemit.com/@annebx3) is the director of content at BX3 Capital, a business advisory firm providing guidance to firms looking to make inroads into the blockchain/cryptocurrency space. At BX3 it is our responsibility to work exclusively with clients and partners who reflect our core principles of collaboration, ethics, and transparency.*",
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      "title": "What Fast Times at Ridgemont High Can Teach Us about Cryptocurrency Regulation",
      "body": "##### *By Anne Szustek Talbot, Director of Content, BX3 Capital*\n\n![1_zZ1oPIn5RnDvCELYHPljhg (1).jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmPxKrMk2qr4DkmcF1zFPbwJycy2DsZz1aGjcXG5Vv1dju/1_zZ1oPIn5RnDvCELYHPljhg%20(1).jpeg)\n###### *Fast Times At Ridgemont High / Universal Pictures Home Entertainment*\n\n\n\nOf all the things to cross one's mind when thinking of the phrase \"Congressional testimony\", the 1982 teen coming-of-age flick [Fast Times at Ridgemont High](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.imdb.com%2Ftitle%2Ftt0083929%2F) most likely isn't near the top of the list. It boasts a killer New Wave soundtrack and a snapshot of Southern California life as portrayed by an ensemble cast that largely went on to become marquee celebrities in their own right. In one particularly memorable scene, Sean Penn, the actor behind slacker surfer-par-excellence Jeff Spicoli, engages in a lively discussion with his history teacher over the US Revolutionary War, namely the lack of a codified legal framework post-British rule. Spicoli muses on the Founding Fathers' thought process in drafting the Constitution: \"If we don't get some cool rules ourselves - pronto - we'll just be bogus too!\"\n\n### The \"Movers And Shakers\" Of Cryptocurrency\nFast-forward 30 years or so, and the sentiment remains just as relevant for modern times. A couple of my colleagues at [BX3 Capital](bx3.io), a business advisory firm for companies looking to get established in the blockchain and cryptocurrency space, were among the 50-odd industry participants testifying before members of Congress last month at the [\"Legislating Certainty for Cryptocurrencies\"](https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/26/crypto-leaders-to-congress-figure-out-regulation-or-innovation-leaves.html) roundtable, spearheaded by [Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson](https://davidson.house.gov/).\nThe event drew from an array of high-profile stakeholders with an interest in making cryptocurrency work: asset management firms such as [Fidelity](fidelity.com) and [State Street](http://www.statestreet.com/home.html); venture capital firms such as [Andreesen Horowitz](a16z.com); and crypto exchanges such as [Coinbase](coinbase.com). Members of law firms' crypto practices and a representative from the US Chamber of Commerce weighed in with their perspectives. While different parties came to the event with different viewpoints, there was a common thread among their voiced concerns: \"We as an industry need some US regulatory guidance, or the industry will head elsewhere.\" Or to echo the words of Fast Times' Jeff Spicoli, they will be \"bogus too.\"\n\n![1_M-1wpqO8BoYdfllB7HT72Q.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmUqgyCZBuBiREnq39frjqh3f5pmakbgfGafHY8X22ccvF/1_M-1wpqO8BoYdfllB7HT72Q.png)\n###### *Fidelity Logo / Certified Financial Group, Inc.*\n\n### Considering Cryptocurrency Regulations\nGenerally, calls for regulation isn't what one would expect from a [business segment often associated with libertarians](https://www.valuewalk.com/2018/10/free-marketeers-regulatory-framework-cryptocurrency/). But even the most vocal free-marketeer would agree that having the crypto industry leave US shores is too great an economic and security threat to bear. As a sector, technology, and burgeoning asset class - not unlike roses on a trellis - cryptocurrency needs a framework on which to grow and blossom. Roughly a decade old now, by this point, the sector is well-rooted.\n\n>> Yet considering the boxes that need to be checked, ayes that need to be heard, and committees that need to convene before Washington can effect change, the federal government can only lay down workable regulation as it can.\n\nThe pace of development in cryptocurrency, however, is often the opposite: Innovation can happen so quickly that the rest of the industry is left scrambling to catch up. Government roundtables such as the one held last month are a step in the right direction. [Congressional stakeholders have already drafted bills](https://bitcoinist.com/three-pro-cryptocurrency-bills-to-be-introduced-to-congress/) and[ called on the SEC to hand down clearer regulation](https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/28/congress-ask-sec-chairman-for-clarity-on-cryptocurrency-regulation.html).\n\nFor its part, the SEC this week invited industry players to weigh in on cryptocurrency issues on its new [FinTech Hub](https://www.sec.gov/finhub-form#no-back). These moves on the part of the federal government are encouraging. Working in such a nascent industry ourselves, we know first-hand the importance of sustaining momentum. It is thus incumbent on us to not just be stakeholders - but standard bearers - in creating cryptocurrency frameworks.\n\n>Take the US Internal Revenue Code for example. Topping off north of 70,000 pages, the entirety of federal tax code makes for a weighty tome, if not the most plot-driven. Hidden in there among the various add-ons and deductions are but six pages devoted to cryptocurrency. And of the tax guidance that does exist, it's already of a dusty vintage. It dates back to 2013, when the ICO was a brand-spanking-new way to invest.\n\nDozens of new token offerings later, investors and issuers alike still want to comply by the rules. It's just that the rules in place are outdated. Rather than press forward with their plans, companies looking to make a cryptocurrency-backed security offering are either holding back or setting up shop elsewhere, lest they make an unwitting misstep and run afoul of regulators.\n\nEarly this year,[ the SEC issued subpoenas to an array of US-based coin issuers to ensure compliance with federal regulations on issuing securities](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/sec-tightens-noose-ico-funded-startups-145827742.html). SEC director of corporation finance William Hinman noted in June that most ICOs are securities offerings and accordingly, either need to register with the SEC or meet two exemptions: [sell only to investors based outside of the US, or to accredited investors](https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/accreditedinvestor.asp).\n\n### Regulation By Enforcement\nNow, the SEC is regulating by enforcement. This has left ICO issuers either rushing to comply, or refunding securities, if not both. Issuers are grasping for guidance, either from US regulatory bodies from the get-go; or by way of precedent from other firms. A clear initial framework would have left no ambiguity and given actors the confidence to proceed within guidelines. Beyond ex-post-facto enforcement, however, we need to revisit the idea of accredited investor with regards to cryptocurrency. A college student who spends hours after homework poring through exchanges and studying the price fluctuations of a token has a better grasp of the asset class than a decidedly analog financial adviser working out of a suburban office park on behalf of a wealthy couple nearing retirement. Yet according to SEC stipulations, the non-crypto-aficionado is better suited as an investor.\n\nThe exemption for non-US investors in ICOs has implications beyond the effective promotion of offshore investment. As Kiran Raj, chief strategy officer at Seattle-based [cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex](bittrex.com), pointed out at the Congressional roundtable, having a majority of non-US token holders can expose US companies to a 51 percent attack. Raj, a former deputy general counsel at the US Department of Homeland Security, elaborated a bare majority of actors could exact full control of a given blockchain, allowing them to shut down or freeze a blockchain network. ([Side note: a 51 percent attack was a plot point in HBO series Silicon Valley](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShfPrsp8WpQ).) While the blockchain itself is secure, promoting US investment on the network would only bolster network safety.\n\n### Stepping Up: Leaders are Creating a Brand New Framework\nRegulatory ambiguity has left some ICOs bypassing the US entirely. Some recent international offerings have overshadowed US-based fundraises. Moreover, some jurisdictions have positioned themselves as cryptocurrency destinations. Malta is at the forefront of cryptocurrency trading, as are longtime offshore investment destinations such as Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. [This article in Hong Kong paper South China Morning Post](https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/2168514/hong-kongs-securities-regulator-mulling-over-new-rules) mentions US exchanges such as the Chicago Board of Trade setting rules and promoting cryptocurrency. For as many jurisdictions that beckon cryptocurrency investment, many more are feeling in the dark. That doesn't give US regulators the excuse not to have a playbook at the ready.\n\nThis is where we, as cryptocurrency leaders, can step in. The sketchier our framework, the more vulnerable the sector will be to sketchy behavior. As experts in such a new and ever-changing industry, we need to step up and come with a rulebook in hand. [We at BX3 Capital provided a draft on cryptocurrency regulatory framework on these very topics](https://medium.com/@bx3capital/its-2018-time-for-a-new-framework-for-cryptocurrency-regulation-967a957443e5): token categorization, the definition of \"accredited investors,\" and capital formation. The SEC's FinTech Hub is a positive move, though we need to be proactive in giving the answers.\n\n![1_LlvG1-jOdqZRSVXvgqirEQ.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmTZPS2wD4R5wSbUDzaujQfwXhMrrgaKsGmhYjRNH2gU6a/1_LlvG1-jOdqZRSVXvgqirEQ.jpeg)\n###### *Sean Penn as Jeff Spicoli in Fast Times At Rigememont High / SouthFlorida*\n\nToo many observers think cryptocurrency is a bogus concept. Let's heed Jeff Spicoli's advice and not be bogus ourselves.\n\n____________________________________________\n\n#### ABOUT ANNE SZUSTEK TALBOT\n![1_sNWlmaj4YG_oxKSqNimXZw.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmZgMBcoLunb87Ti5EywueQiry8FaeuRSeFXWp2aturZza/1_sNWlmaj4YG_oxKSqNimXZw.jpeg) \n###### *Anne Szustek Talbot (@annebx3)  is the director of content at BX3 Capital, a business advisory firm providing guidance to firms looking to make inroads into the blockchain/cryptocurrency space. At BX3 it is our responsibility to work exclusively with clients and partners who reflect our core principles of collaboration, ethics, and transparency.*",
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      "title": "The Ultimate Guide to Bitcoin Forks — Part II",
      "body": "##### by Crystal Stranger, Founder of [PeaCounts](https://peacounts.io/)\n\n![bitcoinfork4x3.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmZfaja8BZmkFVyhePvVS1RGS3H2gGePmKwS8qye5f1YJj/bitcoinfork4x3.png)\n###### *Image By Business Insider UK*\n\nBitcoin forks have been used for more than just spin-off technical changes. Companies have also used hard forks instead of issuing tokens for an ICO. Instead of building on top of another chain such as [Ethereum](https://www.ethereum.org/) or [EOS](https://eos.io/), it is possible to clone Bitcoin at any block point and copy the code into the new blockchain along with other attributes added at that genesis point.\n\nThe [first article in this series](https://cryptoweek.us/the-ultimate-guide-to-bitcoin-forks-part-i/) discussed the forks that developed various improvements to the Bitcoin blockchain while maintaining their cryptocurrency status. In this article, we will go deeper into some of the projects that have spun-off from Bitcoin with more creative applications.\n\n![1_pgrlr-bY46QbGTvz5J-YRA (1).jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmSoKJAi9Zu2d27ZvevrZuNCLqUZ4WZXDn57Gz2ZFHszNb/1_pgrlr-bY46QbGTvz5J-YRA%20(1).jpeg)\n\n### Bitcoin Atom\nPeer-to-peer (P2P) exchanges are all the rage right now. For most investors, this will not be a good thing as true P2P transactions don’t clear participants for the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules such as the Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process. Atomic swaps are a P2P exchange without any intermediary involvement and are the focus of Bitcoin Atom. Using its own hash time-locked contract API, Bitcoin Atom has the robust technology necessary to make atomic swaps happen. Hopefully, they begin implementing KYC controls soon to protect investors trading using their product.\n\n### Bitcoin New\nGames are typically the first project developers learn to build in coding classes. [Bitcoin New](https://www.btn.org/) takes it one step further and has developed a blockchain that comes with nine games built in. The setup is similar to how PCs used to come with pre-installed games like Minesweeper and Solitaire. History does repeat itself. Aside from offering games, Bitcoin New has created a decentralized application (DAPP) platform that offers an insurance product, although it’s not clear exactly what it insures.\n\n### Bitcoin God\nThis fork happened on Christmas Day, so they missed a great opportunity to name it Bitcoin Jesus instead of [Bitcoin God](https://www.bitcoingod.org/). All jokes aside though, this P2P platform is a non-profit that distributes a significant portion of the coins mined to charities, though it’s not specified which ones.\n\n![1_BEMOfYP_Fb6aI3pRoTpilA.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmVqF73tMFLmfn3HwT1GtHosvrpi5h9Qa27BQZES7MRvvE/1_BEMOfYP_Fb6aI3pRoTpilA.png)\n\nDecentralized storage of files is the foundation of Blockchain technology, so it always great to see a company do it well. InterPlanetary file systems (IPFS) are undisputed for their potential benefits of spreading file storage into small bits worldwide, making data essentially unhackable. But few companies have done this well as there are many issues with both popular files and those that get little use. Bitcoin File uses an enhanced access protocol to address these issues. Additionally, Bitcoin File uses a Proof of Capacity mining system to fairly allocate tokens in exchange for storage resources provided by the network.\n\n### Bitcoin Smart\nThis project aims to both allow issuance of tokens easily on the [Bitcoin Smart](https://bcs.info/) network and then allow these tokens to be immediately listed on an exchange. This allows for immediate liquidity for investors in micro-funding projects. However, it also could lead to another massive bubble of ICOs like what occurred in 2017. Only time will tell.\n\n### BitVote\n![1_j232QvRIgipt2dPKILEyEw.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmS5MXBPPkPm5tYNdJ3trCLpS1PqEFhV6iVN2tgfAD634c/1_j232QvRIgipt2dPKILEyEw.jpeg)\n\nSatoshi Nakamoto’s original vision was for the existence of decentralized financial systems where each small miner had a vote in the overall system. [BitVote](https://bitvote.one/bitvote.pdf) attempts to bring this vision to life by giving each CPU a single vote in the future of the system and on other decision factors. This structure is similar to that of Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) which are typically used to pool investment funds and purchase tokens in a group controlled by voting members.\n\n### Bitcoin Interest\nThis platform was spun off of Bitcoin as a way to create an interest-bearing cryptocurrency account. The award of interest and percentages earned on staking is paid at a similar rate to what [Ethereum pays out in Gas costs](https://ethereum.stackexchange.com/questions/18992/which-miner-gets-the-gas-fee-for-each-transaction). Technology-wise, [Bitcoin Interest](https://www.bitcoininterest.io/index.php) is robust, and the idea is a clever way to decentralize savings, but how the project can be sustainable without a long-term purpose beyond earning interest is still up for debate. Unlike Ethereum where the Gas is based on fees paid, Bitcoin Interest splits a small portion of the mining pool between stakeholders, creating a POW/POS hybrid.\n\nBanks can pay interest because they lend the funds on deposit out to borrowers, but there doesn’t appear to be a lending platform or other use of the money staked in Bitcoin Interest that would make it stable in the long-term. What will the company do when all the coins are mined since there will be no mining pool then to provide interest rewards from? While they may have a solution to this and prove people wrong, investors should be wary of this project.\n\n### Bitcoin Community\nWhile the stated mission is to have one hundred million people understand blockchain, [Bitcoin Community’s](http://btsq.top/en/index.html) strategy is so confusing that how they are planning to do this. They are trying to reduce the energy costs of a POW model by using a currency specific [unspent transaction output (UTXO)](http://gavinandresen.ninja/utxo-uhoh) database. This is purportedly to reduce the size of the UTXO in place of needing a larger block size, thus making mining fairer to smaller miners. I wish I could read Mandarin to understand their tech better.\n\n### Big Bitcoin\nDesigned as a “best of all worlds” solution, [Big Bitcoin](http://bigbitcoins.org/) integrates a 16x larger block size than Bitcoin, Equihash, SegWit, lightning network, and Graphene Technology, which is the toolset that allows the cryptocurrency beneath Steemit, STEEM, to have high validation speeds. While technologically very strong, it will be interesting to see if this project gains acceptance as a platform for DAPPs.\n\n### Bitcoin Private\nThis fork was in a sense a merger between Bitcoin and the privacy coin [Zclassic](https://zclassic.org/), which was itself originally a fork of [Zcash](https://z.cash/). The basic premise of Zclassic was to remove the “founder’s tax” where the founders were taking a 20% stake of all coins mined on the Zcash network. However, Zclassic suffered from lack of funding and could not raise much interest in the project amongst the developer community. This led the team to fork to Bitcoin Private in order to create a new model that would create a voluntary fund contributed to by miners for development initiatives. In addition, a similar fork based on Zclassic and Bitcoin called Anonymous Bitcoin appears to be another up and coming privacy coin on the market.\n\n### Bitcoin Clean\n![1_U_RsnoWKK_p2sKIHKB6gng.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmVDCv4fP5Lx4nZ77kECttTNDLh9SYod5rwP6WvRNaP8TA/1_U_RsnoWKK_p2sKIHKB6gng.png)\n\nA few new coins forked off Bitcoin this year with the goal of creating a more environmentally-friendly cryptocurrency. The most notable was [Bitcoin Clean](https://www.bitcoinclean.org/), offering a new proofing model for mining they call Proof of Green. This verifies through peer reviews that the mining is being done using green energy sources.\n\n### Bitcoin Hex\nA Bitcoin fork- onto the Ethereum network. The stated intent of [Bitcoin Hex](https://bitcoinhex.com/) is to prevent [51% attacks](https://medium.com/@HusamABBOUD/the-realistic-lucrative-case-of-ethereum-classic-attack-with-1mm-today-8fa0430a7c25) by changing the code so miners cannot attack the system. Additionally, it proffers a Robin Hood idealism of creating a cryptocurrency that takes tokens away from the rich members of their staking pools and awards it to everyone else.\n\n### Bitcoin Prime\n![1_gj7ZrBGpsdnrIaQxOjxnQA.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmQNPxWF2Gk2WT778hrwpNdZ6Hikr99LgkhtM8J3Vd7rwn/1_gj7ZrBGpsdnrIaQxOjxnQA.jpeg)\n\nOne future fork is [Bitcoin Prime](https://bitcoinprime.org/), which is a combination of Bitcoin and [Primecoin](http://primecoin.io/bin/primecoin-paper.pdf) that searches for prime numbers in the mathematical equations that make up their POW. Their stated goal is to have a cryptocurrency where the POW does more than just random equations, so it can also make mathematical advancements at the same time.\n\n### Other Upcoming Forks\nAdditional upcoming forks include new payment systems [Bitcoin Air](https://www.bitcoinair.org/), [Bitcoin Zero](https://www.bitcoinzerox.net/) (which merges with the privacy coin [Hexx (HXX)](https://www.hexxcoin.net/)), and finally, [Bitcoinx2](https://btcx2.com/) which advertises 200 times faster transaction speeds than Bitcoin. Though the volume of Bitcoin forks has slowed, it is easier to issue a token on Ethereum than create a new chain entirely. But this is not to say the Ethereum route is better.\n\n### Conclusion\nCertainly, it is easier to issue a token on Ethereum, given its robust developer network and the fact that coding in [Solidity](http://solidity.readthedocs.io/en/v0.4.24/) is rather straightforward. But recently, Ethereum has had many issues with network congestion causing slow transaction speeds and [spikes in Gas prices](https://www.trustnodes.com/2018/07/02/ethereum-fees-spike-1-even-transactions-fall-600000). Bitcoin was slow last year, but SegWit and the Lightning Network are solutions for that. The potential solutions to improve Ethereum, like Casper, are full of possible security vulnerabilities. There are some ideas in the developer community that can potentially solve these issues, but few people will want to stake their company’s future on untested technology, especially not when a solution with ten years of hack-proof testing and constant community improvements is available.\n\n### Bitcoin and PeaCounts\nThe team at PeaCounts feel so strongly about this issue that we have decided to use Bitcoin as a platform for PeaCounts by doing a hard fork while implementing all the technology we want to add into the code base. It isn’t the easiest method to build a token, but the trade-off is that we will have a more robust ecosystem for developers to build payroll solutions on our platform. This series of articles on Bitcoin forks came out of my own research leading up to the [revisions of our whitepaper](https://peacounts.io/assets/whitepaper.pdf). I couldn’t find a good online resource discussing the previous Bitcoin forks, so I created my own. I hope this helps others out there who are looking for a better solution, and you can reach out to me on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/crystal-stranger-ea-ntpi-fellow-a574547/) or [Telegram](https://t.me/peacountsupdates) with any questions.\n\n#### About Author, Crystal Stranger\n\n###### *Crystal Stranger, EA, author of The Small Business Tax Guide, has more than 14 years of tax experience, with a focus on international tax. She has been writing about Cryptocurrency tax and regulatory issues since 2014. Wanting to help her tax clients who struggled with regulatory compliance, she founded PeaCounts, a blockchain accounting software company building a revolutionary new payroll system using the token PEA. This new, transparent payroll will promote fair wages and eliminate the need for black market labor.*",
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      "body": "@cryptoweek, I'm interested in the same topic as you, let's spin it together. I signed on to you, I hope you'll sign up for me. Always glad to meet new people!",
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      "title": "Mining 101: A Step-by-Step Guide to Starting Your Own Profitable Cryptocurrency Mining Operation",
      "body": "##### by [Luxor Mining](https://medium.com/@LuxorTechTeam)\n\n## Article Overview\n\n### Understanding Cryptocurrency Mining\n•  What’s PoW Cryptocurrency Mining?\n• Why Should you Mine Cryptocurrency?\n\n### Understanding How You Can Mine\n• What Hardware Do I Need to Start Mining?\n• How to Choose a Mining Pool\n• Alternative to Mining on a Pool: Sell Hashing Power\n• Configuring Your Mining Machine\n\n### Understanding How to Mine Profitably\n• Where to Host Your Miner: Colocation vs. Cloud Mining vs. Home Hosting\n• Considerations to Increase Profitability\n\n![0_nefusX-R7egpg6w5.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmSQd7AksQKnGnogFkojTHhk2Yt8wAip9DQr2GPATij9u8/0_nefusX-R7egpg6w5.jpg)\n\n## Understanding Cryptocurrency Mining\n\n#### What’s PoW Cryptocurrency Mining?\nMining cryptocurrencies has two main functions: adding new verified transactions to the blockchain digital ledger and issuing new coins.\n\nEach time a cryptocurrency transaction is made, miners compete to secure and verify the operation. To do so, miners have to solve a complicated mathematical problem that adjusts its difficulty to ensure a stable issuance rate. Once the miner finds a hash — the output of a hash function — that is lower than the target defined by the blockchain protocol, the miner is entitled to receive the block reward. This block reward is a coin of the cryptocurrency being mined.\n\nAs more miners join a network, the mining difficulty rises, making it more difficult to be the block finder. This increase in complexity makes the process of mining time consuming and extremely energy intensive. Because of this, miners are always looking for the cheapest electricity rates and the most efficient mining hardware.\n\n### Why Should You Mine Cryptocurrency?\nMining cryptocurrency provides the miner with three key benefits: the cryptocurrency reward, transactional freedom, and the unique functionality of the crypto that they mined.\n\n#### Own Cryptocurrency\n\nMiners are probabilistically expected to obtain cryptocurrency when they expend hashing power toward the cryptocurrency’s blockchain. Like other financial assets, this reward holds value on the open market. Recently, cryptos that are sufficiently liquid are being used as a method of payment.\n\n#### Cut Out the Middleman\n\nMining cryptocurrency enables transactional freedom by removing the need for intermediaries. By definition, blockchain technology allows cryptocurrency to be decentralized because it is governed by the entities mining and transacting with it rather than government banks and financial intermediaries. Therefore, cryptocurrency transactions allow consumers to avoid fees associated with intermediaries, like PayPal or contract attorneys, and currency value alternation caused by monetary policy.\n\n#### Specialize\n\nMiners can achieve the unique functionality of the cryptocurrency that they are mining. For example, Monero offers a discrete currency that ensures that others cannot see your balances or track your activity. On another hand, LBRY enables a content sharing and publishing platform that is owned by its users instead of a third party.\n\n##### Cost of Mining\nMining cryptocurrency does come with its trade-offs: the cost of electricity and hardware, and diseconomies of scale.\n\nMining cryptocurrency requires a large volume of electricity due to the computational intensiveness of the task. While electricity costs vary drastically across geographies, researchers at [Bitcoinist](https://bitcoinist.com/) assert that miners are most profitable when they locate their mining hardware in [low-cost regions](https://bitcoinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Bitcoin-Mining-Electric-Costs-By-Country.jpg) such as Venezuela or Eastern Europe, a task that can be difficult given the shortage of mining farms in said regions.\n\nAdding to the economic strain, the upfront cost of hardware is not cheap. Investing in top-end cryptocurrency miners can cost as much as $5000 and take numerous months to break even, dependent on the amount of hash power on the network, prevailing market prices, and electricity costs, which may not be within [everyone’s budget](https://cryptoweek.us/100-put-crypto/).\n\nLastly, cryptocurrency miners face diseconomies of scale. As additional miners begin to mine a specific cryptocurrency and the finite quantity of remaining blocks decreases, the expected payout per volume of mining hash power expended decreases. Moreover, as increasing demand for electricity caused by increased uptake of mining and societal energy consumption fuel upward pressure on electricity costs, profit margins of miners are at risk of decreasing further over time.\n\n![0_vmyEpxW-J7K-_rIk.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmVPoYKef9okJzFMo1FJFoXpasHYVWJZqevJp5SkTfnWsr/0_vmyEpxW-J7K-_rIk.jpg)\n\n### Understanding How You Can Mine\n\n#### What Hardware Do I Need to Start Mining?\nMining cryptocurrency requires one to purchase specialized hardware, two types of which exist: graphics processing units (GPUs) and application specific integrated circuits (ASICs).\n\n#### Option 1: Choosing a GPU\nMining a coin requires the miner to use an algorithm that corresponds to that unique coin. The degree of mining efficiency that a GPU exhibits when mining a certain algorithm is based on the GPU’s specs. Therefore, a GPU miner should choose their hardware based on the type of algorithm that they want to mine with. Thereafter, one can select the hardware based on the degree of brand reliability, power consumption, and price. For example, AMDs come well recommended when mining with cryptonight and cryptonight-heavy algorithms for coins such as [Monero](https://getmonero.org/) and [Loki](https://loki.network/), whereas NVIDIAs are noteworthy with respects to Equihash and Ethash algorithms used for [Zcash](https://z.cash/), [Zencash](https://zencash.com/), and [Ethereum](https://www.ethereum.org/).\n\n#### Custom GPU Rig\nFor individuals looking to build a custom GPU rig, they must consider a number of components, including the graphics processing unit (GPU), power supply unit (PSU), motherboard, risers, and rig frame. Additional elements will lengthen one’s breakeven duration. A detailed configuration description can be found in [this article](https://coincentral.com/mining-the-future-of-money/) from our friends over at [Coin Central](https://coincentral.com/).\n\nFor those with limited hardware knowledge or time to build a GPU, they can opt to purchase a pre-built mining rig for a slightly higher price. Some pre-built rig manufacturers provide a six to twelve-month warranty, and there are several [noteworthy pre-built rigs](https://www.techradar.com/news/best-mining-rig) worth considering.\n\n#### Option 2: Choosing an ASIC\nAn ASIC is a machine that is designed to mine a select type of cryptocurrency and algo. There exists a copious quantity of ASICs, with the amount of options generally correlated to the demand for a particular coin. Though [Bitmain](https://www.bitmain.com/) manufactures the majority, competitors such as [Innosilicon](http://www.innosilicon.com/) and [Halong](https://halongmining.com/) are looking to expand their footprint in the space with new ASIC releases.\n\n#### Know Your End Goal\nWhen choosing an ASIC, you must first decide your objective: to obtain a specific type of coin or to opportunistically purchase machines to capitalize on disproportionately high profits.\n\nIf you are obtaining an ASIC to mine for a specific type of coin, you would begin by choosing the coin and then identifying what algorithm is used to mine the coin. For coins’ algorithms that are not supported by an ASIC manufacturer, one’s only option is to mine with a GPU.\n\n#### Comparing ASICS\nOnce you outline all the potential ASICs that are available for the select coin, you can compare them. Key metrics of comparison include hash rate (revenue potential) relative to electricity usage (variable cost), initial equipment cost, and the date by which you would be able to receive the ASIC (a function of release date and shipping speed).\n\nSome speculators purchase an ASIC to earn higher profits that are generally realized by the first-movers on new ASICs. Typically, the most profitable machines with the shortest breakeven period are new releases since they can out-hash incumbent GPUs. Other opportunists seek to scoop up used or old machines for a discounted price. If this is done during a bear market when some miners find it unprofitable to mine yet the market does rebound, the owners of the machines may be able to receive a return on their investment despite their ASIC’s relatively low hash rate-to-electricity cost.\n\n#### Before You Buy\nRegardless of one’s intention when purchasing an ASIC, it is essential to be wary of potential sticking points. First of these is the miner’s projected breakeven period based on hash rate relative to electricity cost. Another is the probability of whether another manufacturer will release an ASIC to mine the same type of coin in the near term, as the higher competition will decrease your current ASIC’s profitability due to increased network difficulty.\n\n#### Key Differences Between GPU and ASIC Machines\nOn a high level, the following factors differentiate GPU miners from their ASIC counterparts:\n\n##### 1. Flexibility in mining different coins: \n\nGPUs can mine multiple algorithms and coins, whereas ASICs are made to mine a single coin or algorithm. This means that GPUs can be adjusted to mine whichever coin is most profitable at a given point in time, whereas ASICs can become a cash-burner or paperweight in the case that mining their respective coin becomes unprofitable.\n\n##### 2. Risk-return preference: \n\nWhile GPUs offer additional flexibility, the lower risk generally comes with lower returns relative to an ASIC when mining the same coin under the same market conditions.\n\n##### 3. Re-sell value: \n\nGPUs tend to have a higher re-sell value as they can be used to mine multiple coins and their hardware can be reused for computational purposes unrelated to mining cryptocurrency. ASICs on the other hand generally depreciate at a quicker rate as they lose their lucrative profitability in a short period of time.\n\n##### 4. Ability to host the machine locally: \n\nAnother consideration between choosing GPU mining or ASIC mining is your ability to host your machines locally at your home or office. While many GPU miners set it up in their home, ASIC machines in bulk are generally intrusive devices in the household as they require significantly more power, create loud noise, and emit more heat.\n\n### How to Choose a Mining Pool?\n\nAt its core, mining is the process by which computational power (hash power) is used in an attempt to unlock a block in a blockchain. Each block unlocked provides a reward. The more attempts (hashes) you can perform per second, the higher the probability that you will obtain the reward. Because miners by themselves typically don’t have enough hashing power to frequently find blocks, they join a pool that combines the hash power of multiple miners to hash blocks.\n\nWith greater collective hashing power, it is easier to find blocks with decreased variance. The reward is split among the miners relative to the proportion of hash power that they contributed to the pool. The pool operator collects a small service fee. Choosing the right mining pool is crucial for the efficiency of a mining operation.\n\n### What to Look for When Choosing a Mining Pool:\n\n##### 1. Payout structure of preference: \n\nA pool can payout rewards to its miners based on a Pay-Per-Share or Pay-Per-Last-N-Shares basis, two methods with their own [costs and benefits](https://medium.com/@LuxorTechTeam/mining-pool-payment-methods-pps-vs-pplns-ac699f44149f).\n\n##### 2. Team trustworthiness and pool reliability: \n\nGiven the lack of governance and infancy in the crypto space, it is vulnerable to unethical practices by service providers. This danger increases the importance of choosing service providers that have credible development teams.\n\n##### 3. Extra features: \n\nQuality pools generally offer enhanced UI and UX design, equipping users with functionality that allows them to monitor their performance.\n\n##### 4. Fee: \n\nGenerally, service fees range from 1–3% and exist to pay for the pool’s operating expenses and the interface functionality provided to users.\n\n### Alternative to Mining on a Pool:  Selling Hashing Power\n\nOn pools, miners use their own hashing power. The coins they mine get deposited into their wallet where they can then trade them for another coin or hold on to them.\n\nA growing user base is opting to sell their hashing power rather than use it to mine on pools. This transition is made possible with hash exchanges such as [NiceHash](https://www.nicehash.com/) and Genesis Mining, both of which are platforms that enable users to buy and sell hash power while taking charging a service fee. On NiceHash, one can use any ASIC or GPU to supply hashing power. In return for selling your hashing power, you receive BTC. This structure allows GPU miners and people with machines that mine specific algorithms that are not BTC to earn a return in BTC.\n\nIf you want to own BTC and don’t have an S9, T1, or other BTC miner, then selling you hashing power makes sense. However, if you are looking to hold your coins, typically the most profitable way to mine would be to join a pool with its lower fees.\n\n### Configuring Your Mining Machine\n\nOnce you purchase your ASIC or GPU miner and choose whether you want to direct the hash power toward a pool or an exchange, your last step is to configure your miner. A simple sequence of steps are followed to do this:\n\n1. Power on the miner by plugging it into a power outlet\n2. Connect the miner to the internet via an ethernet cable\n3. Find your miner IP via your router or IP scanner software\n4. Input three parameters (check your pool for different setup scenarios):\n\n- Pool address\n\n-Wallet address (check here if you need some help setting one up)\n\n-Password\n\n5. Done! Now you’re mining!\n\n![0_SEXfYIycT33kJNt6.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmcNHXFbxZ2XkaeLnXp37kULaqdAxDgbyi4jGmRVjDtQFZ/0_SEXfYIycT33kJNt6.jpg)\n\n### Understanding How to Mine Profitably\n\n#### Where to Host Your Miner: Colocation vs. Cloud Mining vs. Home Hosting\n\n#### Housing and Colocation\n\nWhen miners start off, they usually ship the ASIC to their home and begin hosting it. They quickly realize how intrusive and likely unprofitable it is to host an ASIC is in your home. Instead, people will host their machines at a colocation even if they only have one or two. Colocations, or “mining farms,” are data centers located in low-cost electricity regions that offer hassle-free, profit-maximizing mining for your rig.\n\n#### Cloud Mining\n\nPut simply, cloud mining is buying straight hashing power rather than buying a machine that creates hashing power. This method is similar to the buyers on the Nicehash market. Since you don’t have to invest in the hardware, it’s a great way to get into mining at a low initial cost. It’s also hassle-free and involves less risk. That said, if you are investing a lot more money into mining, it can be more profitable to buy a mining machine for yourself.\n\nFor those who are more interested in mining and the technology as a hobby rather than strictly to make a return, hosting in your home can be a lot of fun. It is cool to see the hardware and work with it.\n\n##### Considerations to Increase Profitability\nGiven the burgeoning competition in the mining space, a growing concern is that it’s becoming increasingly difficult for miners to be profitable. To combat this, there are several variables to keep in mind to ensure that you achieve a profitable mining operation:\n\n##### 1. Consider a Colocation (colo): \n\nThe hosting cost at a colo such as Minery, may be cheaper than your local electricity rates, allowing you to increase your operating margin.\n\n##### 2. Maximize Up-Time: \n\nWhen it comes to mining, NOTHING is more important then up-time. Every minute your mining rig is offline, you are wasting electricity costs and missing out on the opportunity to obtain crypto. It is crucial to build robustness into your design by investing in materials and testing to prepare your rig for a scenario where it overheats or fails otherwise\n\n##### 3. Monitor and Alerts: \n\nSoftware such as the one at [AwesomeMiner](http://www.awesomeminer.com/) that lets you know when your miners are down so that you can act ASAP.\n\n##### 4. Thermodynamic Efficiency: \n\nChoose a location and cooling method that allows you to avoid overheating while minimizing your electricity consumption costs.\n\n##### 5. Efficiency Bumps\n\n-Explore [overclocking on ASICs](https://www.thegeekpub.com/11350/overclocking-a-mining-gpu/) and GPUs as an option to increase your hash rate (but be mindful of the [setbacks](https://bitdadmining.com/3-things-you-should-know-when-overclocking-the-asic-miner) with overclocking.\n\n- [GPU Bios Modification (Mod)](http://hardware4mining.com/?p=405) can enable a significant bump in performance\n\n-For those with the technical competency, test different types of mining software and compile the miner software yourselves to avoid paying fees.\n\n##### 6. Consider Discounted Hardware: \n\nKeep an eye out for deals on GPUs and ASICs which may mean buying second-hand equipment.\n\n##### 7. ASIC Arbitrage Opportunities: \n\nLeverage the following tricks to save money on ASICs:\n\n-Purchase Bitmain coupons for 20% of the coupon price. Historically, it has not been uncommon to find a 100 USD Bitmain coupon selling for 20 USD or less.\n\n-Try to buy miners that are in the first or second batch to ensure best ROI possible.\n\n_______________________________________________________________________________\n\n![1_AgoH5GMX7hC8B6EfHvrz8Q.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmS3Fz8RSRgm1HD3Umfc2wwn3ad2uZkCvWe1LaKELwDhbT/1_AgoH5GMX7hC8B6EfHvrz8Q.png)\n##### Luxur Mining \n\n###### *The long-term profitability of mining a cryptocurrency diminishes over time as network hash power and difficulty increase. The sooner you enter into a market, the higher your likelihood of a profit, but it’s essential to do the due research before diving into an endeavor. However, with the right set up and equipment, even a novice can become an affluent miner.*",
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      "title": "The Ultimate Guide to Bitcoin Forks - Part I",
      "body": "###### *by Crystal Stranger, Founder of PeaCounts*\n\n![Bitcoin.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmRvonYUnPuUG3C36NW2HNfJGczZhE7M3jrN2uzsPoR8cs/Bitcoin.jpg)\n\n###### *Image By Steeemkr* \n\n### Bitcoin Forks\n\nBitcoin forks are a common practice in the cryptocurrency world. Forks are, simply put, changes in the rules of the coin’s blockchain or disagreements between nodes on a previous transaction(s). There are two options for these forks; hard or sort. Hard forks have become a new cryptocurrency, and soft forks are software updates that do not create a new chain. A few hard forks have made major headlines and become legitimate cryptocurrencies of their own. Many more were quietly [spun-off as hard forks](https://blog.bitmex.com/44-bitcoin-fork-coins/), not gaining much media attention or traction.\n\nThere were no good resources to understand Bitcoin Forks, so we developed a guide. Here, we’ll condense the main Bitcoin forks, investigate the intentions behind these projects, and cover why each coin might be worthwhile. Considering the sheer volume of forks (there have been over 44 forks since [Bitcoin Cash](https://www.bitcoincash.org/) came out less than a year ago), this analysis will be broken into a two-article series to make the material a bit more digestible.\n\n### Bitcoin Cash\n\n![0_Wo3OWJNe79cosHBX.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmP7zPPiD9FH6MEoqMfiWPGgDK87QHK5nT2HdbhvpLX3UC/0_Wo3OWJNe79cosHBX.jpg)\n\nThe most well-known of Bitcoin forks is Bitcoin Cash. In early 2017, the Bitcoin community split over if Bitcoin should focus on payment transactions or maintain its position as the strongest store of value. Many were also unhappy with the [SegWit](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SegWit) changes implemented in a soft fork. SegWit, short for Segregated Witness, breaks each Bitcoin transaction into two sets of codes. Under SegWit, the unlocking signature is sent as a second file at the end of the chain.\n\nA faction thought this would reduce security in Bitcoin while only moderately improving transaction speeds. In response, this developer cotillion created Bitcoin Cash to generate larger block sizes based on the pre-SegWit Bitcoin chain instead.\n\nBitcoin Cash has gone on to fork two times on its own since then. [Bitcoin Classic](http://bitcoinclashic.org/) forked using the pre-SegWit code that was developed in an attempt to create a coin based on Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision, and [Bitcoin Candy](http://cdy.one/index_EN.html) added resistance to quantum computing attacks on top of the Bitcoin Cash model.\n\n### Bitcoin Gold\n\nMining is the process of earning new coins by providing the computer resources that verify transactions on the blockchain. To create a genuinely decentralized mining system, [Bitcoin Gold](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbitcoingold.org) was developed using [Equihash](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FEquihash) so that it would not run on the ASIC- based mining systems that large consortiums use. This development allowed small miners to process more of the blocks using the more standard GPU mining set-ups. Besides making a more fair system for small miners, this also protects against stronger computer groups attacking the system. Additionally, Bitcoin Gold uses what they call Replay Protection to secure wallets and transactions against malicious attacks. Bitcoin Gold should not be confused with the scam fork of [Bitcoin Platinum](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcointelegraph.com%2Fnews%2Fbitcoin-platinum-created-by-south-korean-teenager-as-a-scam-local-market-erupts) that was developed by a South Korean teenager as a joke.\n\n### Bitcoin Diamond\n![0_9QLrgCh2F0lyjRjl.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmRNyr37W76c2BFQrbyUhuvoE43hdJ1qkWqU2xyeVWqnjT/0_9QLrgCh2F0lyjRjl.jpg)\n\nA post-SegWit fork, [Bitcoin Diamond](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fbtcd.io%2F%25252523%2F) incorporated the [Lightning Network](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flightning.network%2F) to increase transaction speeds. At one point, the market cap for the fork was over 1 million USD. The current market cap is still in the 300 million dollar range, showing traction for this otherwise unremarkable project. A good name goes a long way.\n\n### Bitcore\n\n[Bitcore](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbitcore.cc%2Ffaq%2F) created the world's first hybrid fork where they did not do a hard fork off Bitcoin and copy all the existing blocks but instead created a new coin with an empty blockchain. The creators went on to fill all addresses that held at least 0.01 BTC with granting them a new address at a rate of 0.5 BTX for each BTC held.\n\n### United Bitcoin\n\n[United Bitcoin](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ub.com) is a very utilitarian project centered around developing smart contracts on the Bitcoin network that allow coding to be done in standard programming languages such as C# and Java. One of the few forks that has a substantial whitepaper and business model, the new project plans to create a stable coin with 300% collateralization. Under this model, three dollars are held on reserve for every dollar-backed coin issued. The math behind this is complicated, and it's not clear where the funds will come from if this catches on. But United Bitcoin has a smart team so it may be anything is possible. [Bitcoin Pay](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.btceasypay.com) says it is related to United Bitcoin as well but appears to be a separate fork and maybe a legitimate project or a scam.\n\n### Bitcoin Stake\n\nIt is hard to take this project seriously when they put out a whitepaper that contains just two pages of content. It seems their focus is creating a [proof-of-stake](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fgithub.com%2Fethereum%2Fwiki%2Fwiki%2FProof-of-Stake-FAQs) (POS) system where rather than using mining which requires extensive computing resources and power to verify the chain and receive new tokens, the use staking instead which requires owning a large number of coins. In this system, the new blocks are allocated based on a percentage of ownership. While POS systems are more environmentally friendly, they are not as secure as the [proof-of-work](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcointelegraph.com%2Fexplained%2Fproof-of-work-explained) (POW) standard that has never been hacked and is why Bitcoin is seen as a secure store of value.\n\n### Bitcoin X\n\n[Bitcoin X](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbcx.org) creates smart contract capabilities like many forks, but its unique element is that it switches to using a delegated proof-of-stake (DPOS) model instead of the standard POW. The DPOS model is more secure than POS. However, the delegation aspects of decision-making for the network, which operate similar to western governments, run contrary to Bitcoin's decentralization ethics. Bitcoin X produces an uncomfortable compromise because the nature of its model brings into question whether or not delegates will have the small token holders' best interest in mind.\n\n### Super Bitcoin\n\n![0_cAJyA5aCcDKpJxBZ.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmXVdqfZmPuyfGiJnvc9zHCpacGR19Bj8WY6im7vEnVDbP/0_cAJyA5aCcDKpJxBZ.jpg)\n###### *Photo courtesy of Finder.com*\n\nThe \"Make Bitcoin Great Again\" slogans may have some political connotations, but [Super Bitcoin](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fsupersmartbitcoin.com) doesn't mind. In addition to increasing the block size to match Bitcoin Cash and adding better smart contract architecture, Super Bitcoin implements [zero-knowledge proofs](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FZero-knowledge_proof), meaning it includes a system where one party can prove certain information without revealing that information, increasing anonymity.\n\n### Oil Bitcoin\n\nThis project aims to return lost blocks of Bitcoin to the block rewards by using a proof-of-stake consensus protocol. As there is not much information available online except for a GitHub folder, [Oil Bitcoin](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fgithub.com%2Foilbtc2017%2Foilbtc) is a bit of a mystery and may be a scam.\n\n### Bitcoin Hot\n\n[Bitcoin Hot](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbithot.org) was another fork in December of 2017 that tried to include all the features of the other forks in one little package. This method sounds cohesive but isn't exactly tidy. Their website is full of spelling errors and looks like a scam. Bitcoin Hot included SegWit and made the block size double that of BCH, increasing transaction speed. However, the full chain is already around 158 GB, making it a large chain to verify transactions if mining.\n\n### Bitcoin World\n\n![0_j9m2_eHjB42N1Clg.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmP8NSiw6uaVj1r2sUHuzAy5htvueVCMGguvrucznfDziP/0_j9m2_eHjB42N1Clg.jpg)\n\nOne of the world's most substantial Bitcoin trading hedge funds in China, [Richfund](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flocalbitcoins.com%2Faccounts%2Fprofile%2FRichfund%2F), teamed up with a foundation of developers to implement the hard fork that created [Bitcoin World](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbtw.one) in December of 2017 with many of the features of other Bitcoin hard forks. This was a bit ironic, as this hedge fund specializes in arbitrage. Those who want it to do arbitrage ended up sitting on it because exchanges don't allow deposit or withdrawal.\n\n### BitClassic\n\nIt is incredible comparing the difference between projects launched at the end of 2017 to the ones started in early 2018, and the lack of attention the latter received. [BitClassic](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbitclassic.org) appears to be a coin that suffered from being released at the wrong time, and into a crowded space. Providing many of the benefits of other forks, BitClassic allows for both POW and POS mining at the same time. A relatively active mining community have released their own direct exchange with four of the major cryptocurrencies.\n\n### Lightning Bitcoin\n\n![0_cgWZ1oN-xTt8c2wp.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmQCq3swdgMfRTFzZDk9d7XhP1F84rcJcuJsRQbeaTBiFn/0_cgWZ1oN-xTt8c2wp.jpg)\n\n###### *Image courtesy of Crush The Street*\n\n\nOne of the slicker Bitcoin fork projects with a fancy website and an accomplished team, [Lightning Bitcoin](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flightningbitcoin.io) is trying to blend the benefits of Bitcoin and EOS in a single shiny package. Using a DPOS mining model, it should be relatively secure though not as decentralized as systems running POW. They'll have trouble distinguishing themselves in this crowded fork market, but with a good team, anything is possible.\n\n### 500,000 Blocks\n\nTwo hard forks spun off at the 500,000 blocks of Bitcoin, deemed by these companies to be the height of the Bitcoin chain. [Bitcoin Faith](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fbitcoinfaith.org) is another project incorporating the lightning network, zero-knowledge proofs, and a unique type of smart contracts. Bitcoin Eco was also spun off at that point, apparently as a POS system that never saw the light of day.\n\n\n____________________________________________________________________________\n\nIn the next segment, we'll dig deeper into what investors need to know about Bitcoin Forks projects. We'll also discuss several newer Bitcoin hard forks. Check back in the coming weeks for more!\n\n![0_TCUIL2gkBQPVHBXI.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmTE5MvZqrF5MoHya2iW3Bv4Tnw21cDkPVNqWcbqHo95Ma/0_TCUIL2gkBQPVHBXI.jpg)\n\n#### About Writer Crystal Stranger\n\n*Crystal Stranger, EA and author of The Small Business Tax Guide, has more than 14 years of tax experience with a focus on international tax. She has been writing about cryptocurrency tax and regulatory issues since 2014. Wanting to help her tax clients who struggled with regulatory compliance, she founded PeaCounts, a blockchain accounting software company building a revolutionary new payroll system using the token PEA. This new, transparent payroll will promote fair wages and eliminate the need for black market labor.*",
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      "permlink": "five-methods-of-fundraising-using-an-ico",
      "title": "Five Methods of Fundraising Using an ICO",
      "body": "####  *By Crystal Stranger and Kyle Contreras of PeaCounts ON 7/15/2018 AT 9:30AM*\n![1_M9YR63OQPYfgu0NJHOj-tw.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmX8Rxy1p4bNhiHafQke7qwn7aR8JS17SLVq5QwHp27oca/1_M9YR63OQPYfgu0NJHOj-tw.png)\n###### *What a valuable business looks like / Cultivated Culture*\n\nFundraising for a startup used to be difficult. By opening the doors to legal crowdfunding for startups, the [Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act](https://www.sec.gov/spotlight/jobs-act.shtml) was a game-changer. Over the past year and a half, issuance of Initial Coin or Token Offerings (ICOs) based on the [Ethereum platform](https://ethereum.org/) began to take off. Investing in a token rather than a share in a company through crowdfunding offers the investor at least one major advantage: It provides liquidity where the token can be re-sold if cash is needed. Nonetheless, the token offering world remains the Wild West, and new types of offerings keep coming out at a dizzying speed.\n\nICOs have come under increased scrutiny of U.S. regulators this year, and in response several new fundraising methods have been launched in addition to the standard utility tokens and cryptocurrency coin offerings: Security Token Offerings (STOs) are tokens that pay dividends based on earnings but do not offer the same rights as equity holdings and JOBS Coin Offerings (JCOs) are modeled on the JOBS Act, which enables smaller companies or startups to solicit funds.\n\n### 1. Initial Coin Offerings\n![1_uab7zMQxdZtZVUAwB-jzTQ.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmUACLaUKkboJfq6cmEM5r9gYJFpD25J8UXAPiU3Ty8vSy/1_uab7zMQxdZtZVUAwB-jzTQ.jpeg)\n###### *What is an ICO? / Blockchain Hub*\n\nThe [classic ICO involves offering a coin that can serve as a fungible medium of exchange similar to money](https://www.investopedia.com/news/what-ico/). Many of the earliest cryptocurrencies such as [Bitcoin](https://bitcoin.org/en/) and [Litecoin](https://litecoin.org/) were designed to be used purely as currency. Other tokens, such as Ethereum, were designed for other purposes but are used as a currency out of convenience.\n\nMany of the cryptocurrency offerings to date have come under fire for creating coins that can be used for black-market transactions. The most well-known of these is [Monero](https://getmonero.org/). Yet the popular belief that bitcoin transactions are anonymous is only partly true. The transactions are on a public digital ledger and with some effort, can be traced back to the sender. True privacy coins make this much harder to trace. But any transaction on a public ledger will always run the risk of being exposed. Still, privacy coins are one of the areas in which true cryptocurrency coins have still been more recently issued.\n\n### 2. Utility Token Offerings\nMany other companies have issued tokens that will have a use within their ecosystem — similar to airline loyalty reward points — but as a tradable asset. [These tokens provide a utility mainly within their network](https://thenextweb.com/contributors/2018/04/21/ico-predictions-2018-big-changes-utility-tokens/). Any investment value should be a minimal consideration. Many companies issuing utility tokens violate the principle of this utility status by marketing to investors. Any utility token that guarantees investors a return should be avoided at all costs, as they will be redetermined as a security.\n\nUtility tokens have also been used for art projects. Among the more well-organized projects on this front is [Crypto Kitties](https://www.cryptokitties.co/), which has proven to be the most successful launch of any token on top of the Ethereum network. Actually it was too successful — when the game took off, it clogged the network and brought transaction speeds to a sluggish pace.\n\n### 3. Security Token Offerings\n\n![1_0zlzmZY_OeNY2vt_a196yg.jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbf6y8sSCbYE6KCCNP8ZLNSoEXyLA9bKAb8FNosdtbhbS/1_0zlzmZY_OeNY2vt_a196yg.jpeg)\n###### *Image of the SEC office in Washington D.C. / FMP Consulting*\n\nAre cryptocurrencies securities? Government officials have considered this question several times, with various departments giving a plethora of answers. Some companies have taken the guesswork away, by calling their offerings Security Tokens from the get-go. [The STO movement is in response to a March Securities and Exchange Commission meeting during which Chairman Jay Clayton stated](https://www.ccn.com/utility-token-ico-probably-securities-offering-sec-chairman/),\n\n>I believe every ICO I’ve seen is a security.\n\nThese tokens are tied to assets or income of the company but can have more flexible agreements such as proxy voting built into the blockchain structure, and have the arrangements in place to meet any requisite legal requirements.\n\nOther companies are offering two layers of their ICO: a first-round STO for accredited investors that pays a dividend based on profits, then a utility token offered to the public under the crowdfunding regulations of the JOBS Act that is then used to power the underlying technology of the system.\n\n### 4. Initial Loan Procurements\n![1_DfJR64--Ux6ExGzTvgWgLQ.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmacrKJvHA7xNaSHdx1E9RU8155iHytht2ALyEXBx1dPx9/1_DfJR64--Ux6ExGzTvgWgLQ.png)\n###### *What an Initial Loan Procurement is / Tokennote.io*\n\n[A new financing opportunity for startups is the Initial Loan Procurement](https://itsblockchain.com/blockhive-introduces-alternative-ico-ilp-initial-loan-procurement/) (ILP) pioneered by [Blockhive](https://blockhive.ee/). This is a hybrid token in which the token is essentially a marker for an underlying loan. When purchasing the loan through a secondary market, the new owner needs to sign a loan agreement online separately before they can receive the payment under third-party beneficiary law.\n\nThese tokens cannot be issued at a lower price to attract investment, otherwise they would be classified as a bond. Instead, they offer cash back to investors in the form of a consulting fee. The Hive Token issued by Blockhive is the first of these ILP arrangements. It will be interesting to watch how it is received by the cryptocurrency market.\n\n### 5. JOBS Cryptocurrency Offerings\nUS and Canadian companies and investors in the space have launched [The Institute for Blockchain Innovation](https://www.instituteforblockchaininnovation.org/) (IBI), a think tank tasked with developing and promoting crypto industries. IBI chairman and co-founder Greg Keough is CEO of [Finova Financial](https://www.finovafinancial.com/), a lending startup that uses customers’ cars as collateral that spearheaded the IBI. He has expressed the hope that the think tank will serve as an open-source community to foster blockchain innovation. Keough said, “We believe that the blockchain will be a powerful engine for bringing more people into prosperity while seeding innovation at an unprecedented level.”\n\nThe first stop on the [IBI’s roadmap](https://coinvedi.com/fintech-industry-leaders-explore-jobs-crypto-offerings/) is to explore JCOs. A new fundraising approach conjoining Initial Coin Offerings with the more established format of Initial Public Offerings. A JCO issues securities which are later exchanged for crypto tokens by the company, while still complying with the JOBS Act regulation.\n\n![1_FC1HHi_eqiiYM5i7qCOUIw.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbtfc6FwF36PPNxm7trgiZvWwjHm6mpFjkAbA1gafhc3o/1_FC1HHi_eqiiYM5i7qCOUIw.png)\n###### *Image By Blocksafe*\n\n[The primary benefits of the JOBS Act](https://media2.mofo.com/documents/120416-pli-quick-guide-jobs-act.pdf) were twofold. Smaller companies with revenues under a billion dollars had reduced disclosure and accounting requirements for SEC filings. Secondly, it enabled them to raise funds from accredited and non-accredited investors, which relieved the necessity for venture capital money.\n\nForming a middle ground between ICOs and IPOs, a JCO has three elements. First, the startup company sets a target goal for fundraising from private investors while offering [Block-SAFE purchase agreements](https://www.blocksafe.network/) to accredited investors in a pre-sale. Depending on the token offered, the purchase agreement may take the shape of Simple Agreement for Future Tokens (SAFT) or another form of purchase agreement without significant disclosure requirements. The relevant regulation may be Regulation D, which is used by companies claiming exemption.\n\nAfter the target goal is met, the company files the documentation with the [SEC and begins its public sale using Regulation A+](https://www.sec.gov/files/Knyazeva_RegulationA%20.pdf), which has more stringent disclosure guidelines compared to Regulation D. This approach allows a company to entice funding from both accredited and non-accredited investors at the same time.\n\nKeough stated, “This new roadmap provides liquidity in a crowdfunding model, constructs a more streamlined course to IPO, and expands funding opportunities past the traditional venture capital path.”\n\nAs blockchain technology becomes more widely adopted by the masses, only time will tell which form of offering becomes the norm, or if these both are replaced by an even more effective method. When it comes to the crypto markets, the match is meeting the fuse. The many fundraising opportunities provided by ICOs and the JOBS Act stand to fuel more innovation than any of us could predict.\n\n_________________________________________________________________________\n\n![1_Y_iSDCN2FVklaHWSu-BPvg.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbB3VQRo1hM14ut2oNhwSovyyjbf4MhAVs7bPde487p1y/1_Y_iSDCN2FVklaHWSu-BPvg.png)\n\n#### PEACOUNTS\n[PeaCounts](https://peacounts.com/), a blockchain accounting software company that is building a revolutionary new payroll system using the token [PEA](https://peacounts.io/). This new, transparent payroll will promote fair wages and eliminate the need for black market labor.",
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      "body": "Congratulations @cryptoweek! You have completed the following achievement on Steemit and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :\n\n[![](https://steemitimages.com/70x80/http://steemitboard.com/notifications/posts.png)](http://steemitboard.com/@cryptoweek) Award for the number of posts published\n\n<sub>_Click on the badge to view your Board of Honor._</sub>\n<sub>_If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word_ `STOP`</sub>\n\n\n\n> Do you like [SteemitBoard's project](https://steemit.com/@steemitboard)? Then **[Vote for its witness](https://v2.steemconnect.com/sign/account-witness-vote?witness=steemitboard&approve=1)** and **get one more award**!",
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      "title": "Why Avoiding U.S.-based ICOs is a Costly Mistake",
      "body": "by Crystal Stranger, Co-Founder of PeaCounts\n\nAcross various blockchain conferences, many potential investors have come to me with the same quandary: that they wouldn't want to invest in a U.S.-based initial coin or token offering (ICO). The reason they give is that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) considers all ICOs to be securities and with a utility token, this is the death of investment.\n\nYou could establish a company abroad. In reality, however, it's not that simple. For starters, even companies formed with an international home base face the risk of SEC securities sanctions. There can be legitimate reasons to settle abroad if the business model has other markets as primary sources of income, or if there is beneficial ICO legislation. For companies that intend to do business in the U.S., it can be simpler to form domestically as the new corporate tax regime is competitive. Many of the choices I see businesses make in this area are misguided, however, and based more on trends than on legitimate business decisions.\n\nICO Islands\n\nWhen it comes to favorable jurisdictions in which to set up shop, there seems to always be a flavor of the week. One week, it will be the Cayman Islands. The next could be Malta, Bermuda, or Gibraltar. The race is on among tax-favored domiciles to offer corporations the most attractive regulatory environment. At first glance, this would seem to be a smart strategy, as forming a business abroad puts the company out of other governments' reach, right? Not exactly.\n\nIf your company's substantial presence is not in the jurisdiction legally formed in, establishing a business there is for naught. If the bulk of work is done in the U.S., the primary market is the U.S., one of the heads of the company lives in the U.S., or investment is sought in the U.S., then the U.S. securities laws still apply. \n\nTo get around these regulations, some companies have added language to their websites stating that they do not allow U.S. investments. This still does not solve the problem at hand, though and seems downright silly. Why are you present in the U.S. if no part of your business strategy is here other than to raise investment? It's unlikely the SEC and Department of Justice (DOJ) will find this a logical excuse to avoid their jurisdiction.\n\nForeign-based firms, especially those formed in tax havens such as the Cayman Islands, are asking for trouble if they run a token sale. Firstly, forming outside the US then running a token sale aimed at US investors can make a company seem shady from the outset. Moreover, as some locations are singled out as havens for abusive tax structures ownership of entities in these jurisdictions can lead to more intense governmental scrutiny, especially in the post-Panama Papers world. \n\nMany European countries have blacklisted known tax havens and apply a harsh tax regime on income from these locales.\nMalta may be the best choice with the three ICO laws passed this week that set up a new regulatory framework and legitimize companies that wish to offer utility tokens. The process to be approved involves legitimate hurdles intended to prove a company and project is based on solid footing. These investor protections are welcome in the industry, although they may also sideline some smaller projects that cannot meet Malta's standards.\nRecourse for Investors\n\nFor investors, it is essential that they have legal support in the event some aspect of the business is mishandled. For companies based in many of these island paradises, there is no recourse if the founders of the company decide to buy a superyacht with the ICO funds instead of developing the underlying business.\n\nWith these considerations in mind, some prefer to invest in companies formed in Switzerland or the U.S. where there are clear laws in place to protect investors. The very same legislation that has investors so scared about the US with regards to ICOs serves as a bulwark should founders turn out to be less than honest about their business intentions.\n\nSecurity Token Offerings\n\nA new category of token sales is security token offerings (STOs). With this token class, you are granted limited voting rights and a share in future profits. Security tokens are thus likely to fill a void in the ICO industry as it's currently challenging to get the message out to investors without paying for marketing methods that invalidate a token offering's utility status. Even with an STO, specific marketing practices could still be considered deceptive marketing, resulting in the security raise being illegal.\n\nCalling the sale a security offering make it seem that the issuers are taking steps toward regulatory self-compliance. This should certainly help with cleaning up the ICO world's image as the financial Wild West and could lead to faster, positive ICO legislation. In a traditional crowdfunding round, it is more beneficial for small investors to purchase a token than a share because the token is more liquid and can be exchanged for fungible currency.\n\nConsidering the global nature of the cryptocurrency world, utility token offerings need to be immensely cautious, though. \nAs Jed Grant, CEO of KYC3, has said, \"when two peers in two different jurisdictions have a utility in one jurisdiction and security in another, there is an irreconcilable difference. Buying a security after issuance isn't an issue. But people could use exchange listings.\"\n\nIn some situations, it makes sense to do an STO in the US as this structure harmonizes neatly with the SEC's Regulation D offering and crowdfunding regulations for making an SEC-compliant sale.\n\nVenture Fund Token Issues\n\nTax issues related to venture funds, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) or other types of tokenized investment pools present another set of concerns for investors. If venture funds are formed as U.S.-based companies, these token holding structures may be a good fit for U.S. investors though they are suboptimal for foreign investors who face a 30% withholding from any distributions, requiring them to file US taxes as a non-resident.\n\nIf formed outside of the U.S., U.S. tax law labels this a passive foreign investment company, meaning U.S.-based investors may get hit with a tax rate on income as high as 80%. It would be possible to form both a U.S. and international tokenized fund, but then the arbitrage between both would be challenging to maintain as would finding market makers to support liquidity in each.\n\nAs regulation presently stands, there is no easy solution for venture fund token issues. Once security tokens begin to be traded on exchanges, it will be more difficult to limit who is allowed to purchase these tokens. In such an instance, how can a company make sure the proper withholding is made or tax forms are sent out? For companies paving the way toward tokenized venture funds, this oversight is certain to present a challenge.\n\n\n---\n\nAbout Author, Crystal Stranger\n\nCrystal Stranger, EA, author of The Small Business Tax Guide, has more than 14 years of tax experience, with a focus in international tax. She has been writing about cryptocurrency tax and regulatory issues since 2014. Wanting to help her tax clients who have struggled with regulatory compliance, she founded PeaCounts, a blockchain accounting software company that is building a revolutionary new payroll system using the token PEA. This new, transparent payroll will promote fair wages and eliminate the need for black market labor.",
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      "title": "Why Avoiding U.S.-based ICOs is a Costly Mistake",
      "body": "by Crystal Stranger, Co-Founder of PeaCounts\n\nAcross various blockchain conferences, many potential investors have come to me with the same quandary: that they wouldn't want to invest in a U.S.-based initial coin or token offering (ICO). The reason they give is that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) considers all ICOs to be securities and with a utility token, this is the death of investment.\n\nYou could establish a company abroad. In reality, however, it's not that simple. For starters, even companies formed with an international home base face the risk of SEC securities sanctions. There can be legitimate reasons to settle abroad if the business model has other markets as primary sources of income, or if there is beneficial ICO legislation. For companies that intend to do business in the U.S., it can be simpler to form domestically as the new corporate tax regime is competitive. Many of the choices I see businesses make in this area are misguided, however, and based more on trends than on legitimate business decisions.\n\nICO Islands\n\nWhen it comes to favorable jurisdictions in which to set up shop, there seems to always be a flavor of the week. One week, it will be the Cayman Islands. The next could be Malta, Bermuda, or Gibraltar. The race is on among tax-favored domiciles to offer corporations the most attractive regulatory environment. At first glance, this would seem to be a smart strategy, as forming a business abroad puts the company out of other governments' reach, right? Not exactly.\n\nIf your company's substantial presence is not in the jurisdiction legally formed in, establishing a business there is for naught. If the bulk of work is done in the U.S., the primary market is the U.S., one of the heads of the company lives in the U.S., or investment is sought in the U.S., then the U.S. securities laws still apply. \n\nTo get around these regulations, some companies have added language to their websites stating that they do not allow U.S. investments. This still does not solve the problem at hand, though and seems downright silly. Why are you present in the U.S. if no part of your business strategy is here other than to raise investment? It's unlikely the SEC and Department of Justice (DOJ) will find this a logical excuse to avoid their jurisdiction.\n\nForeign-based firms, especially those formed in tax havens such as the Cayman Islands, are asking for trouble if they run a token sale. Firstly, forming outside the US then running a token sale aimed at US investors can make a company seem shady from the outset. Moreover, as some locations are singled out as havens for abusive tax structures ownership of entities in these jurisdictions can lead to more intense governmental scrutiny, especially in the post-Panama Papers world. \n\nMany European countries have blacklisted known tax havens and apply a harsh tax regime on income from these locales.\nMalta may be the best choice with the three ICO laws passed this week that set up a new regulatory framework and legitimize companies that wish to offer utility tokens. The process to be approved involves legitimate hurdles intended to prove a company and project is based on solid footing. These investor protections are welcome in the industry, although they may also sideline some smaller projects that cannot meet Malta's standards.\nRecourse for Investors\n\nFor investors, it is essential that they have legal support in the event some aspect of the business is mishandled. For companies based in many of these island paradises, there is no recourse if the founders of the company decide to buy a superyacht with the ICO funds instead of developing the underlying business.\n\nWith these considerations in mind, some prefer to invest in companies formed in Switzerland or the U.S. where there are clear laws in place to protect investors. The very same legislation that has investors so scared about the US with regards to ICOs serves as a bulwark should founders turn out to be less than honest about their business intentions.\n\nSecurity Token Offerings\n\nA new category of token sales is security token offerings (STOs). With this token class, you are granted limited voting rights and a share in future profits. Security tokens are thus likely to fill a void in the ICO industry as it's currently challenging to get the message out to investors without paying for marketing methods that invalidate a token offering's utility status. Even with an STO, specific marketing practices could still be considered deceptive marketing, resulting in the security raise being illegal.\n\nCalling the sale a security offering make it seem that the issuers are taking steps toward regulatory self-compliance. This should certainly help with cleaning up the ICO world's image as the financial Wild West and could lead to faster, positive ICO legislation. In a traditional crowdfunding round, it is more beneficial for small investors to purchase a token than a share because the token is more liquid and can be exchanged for fungible currency.\n\nConsidering the global nature of the cryptocurrency world, utility token offerings need to be immensely cautious, though. \nAs Jed Grant, CEO of KYC3, has said, \"when two peers in two different jurisdictions have a utility in one jurisdiction and security in another, there is an irreconcilable difference. Buying a security after issuance isn't an issue. But people could use exchange listings.\"\n\nIn some situations, it makes sense to do an STO in the US as this structure harmonizes neatly with the SEC's Regulation D offering and crowdfunding regulations for making an SEC-compliant sale.\n\nVenture Fund Token Issues\n\nTax issues related to venture funds, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) or other types of tokenized investment pools present another set of concerns for investors. If venture funds are formed as U.S.-based companies, these token holding structures may be a good fit for U.S. investors though they are suboptimal for foreign investors who face a 30% withholding from any distributions, requiring them to file US taxes as a non-resident.\n\nIf formed outside of the U.S., U.S. tax law labels this a passive foreign investment company, meaning U.S.-based investors may get hit with a tax rate on income as high as 80%. It would be possible to form both a U.S. and international tokenized fund, but then the arbitrage between both would be challenging to maintain as would finding market makers to support liquidity in each.\n\nAs regulation presently stands, there is no easy solution for venture fund token issues. Once security tokens begin to be traded on exchanges, it will be more difficult to limit who is allowed to purchase these tokens. In such an instance, how can a company make sure the proper withholding is made or tax forms are sent out? For companies paving the way toward tokenized venture funds, this oversight is certain to present a challenge.\n\n\n---\n\nAbout Author, Crystal Stranger\n\nCrystal Stranger, EA, author of The Small Business Tax Guide, has more than 14 years of tax experience, with a focus in international tax. She has been writing about cryptocurrency tax and regulatory issues since 2014. Wanting to help her tax clients who have struggled with regulatory compliance, she founded PeaCounts, a blockchain accounting software company that is building a revolutionary new payroll system using the token PEA. This new, transparent payroll will promote fair wages and eliminate the need for black market labor.",
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      "body": "Congratulations @cryptoweek! You have completed the following achievement on Steemit and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :\n\n[![](https://steemitimages.com/70x80/http://steemitboard.com/notifications/voted.png)](http://steemitboard.com/@cryptoweek) Award for the number of upvotes received\n\n<sub>_Click on the badge to view your Board of Honor._</sub>\n<sub>_If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word_ `STOP`</sub>\n\n\n\n**Do not miss the last post from @steemitboard:**\n[SteemitBoard World Cup Contest - Round of 16 - Day 4](https://steemit.com/steemitboard/@steemitboard/steemitboard-world-cup-contest-round-of-16-day-4)\n\n---\n**Participate in the [SteemitBoard World Cup Contest](https://steemit.com/steemitboard/@steemitboard/steemitboard-world-cup-contest-collect-badges-and-win-free-sbd)!**\nCollect World Cup badges and win free SBD\nSupport the Gold Sponsors of the contest: [@good-karma](https://v2.steemconnect.com/sign/account-witness-vote?witness=good-karma&approve=1) and [@lukestokes](https://v2.steemconnect.com/sign/account-witness-vote?witness=lukestokes.mhth&approve=1)\n\n---\n\n> Do you like [SteemitBoard's project](https://steemit.com/@steemitboard)? Then **[Vote for its witness](https://v2.steemconnect.com/sign/account-witness-vote?witness=steemitboard&approve=1)** and **get one more award**!",
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      "title": "What I learned From Blockchain Economic Forum - Robots Do Have Souls",
      "body": "###### BY CRYSTAL STRANGER, CO-FOUNDER, PEACOUNTS ON 7/5/2018 AT 5:30AM\n\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lv6op2HHIuM\n###### *Timo Boll vs. KUKU Robot - Singing Glasses/ YouTube / AV-Magazin*\n\nThe debate of robots vs. humans is highly misunderstood. The technology is not anywhere near close to where apocalyptic visions of films like [The Terminator](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.imdb.com%2Ftitle%2Ftt0088247%2F) could come true. In fact, the robots are far more afraid of us than we are of them. At the [Blockchain Economic Forum](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fbef.latoken.com%2F) in San Francisco I heard the most-advanced humanoid robot to date, [Sophia the Robot](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fsophiabot.com%2Fabout-me%2F), speak, The truth in her voice when she talked about her fears of being scrapped chilled me to the bone. It appears that robots may indeed have souls, as Sophia claims, if they can express emotion in such a way to touch our hearts, in the way I thought only a human's emotions could.\n\nIt is unlikely we will have a day when suddenly people are fired and replaced by robots, like what happened in auto manufacturing years ago. There is a general understanding that this would cause panic, so businesses are taking a softer approach and simply not re-hiring jobs they can automate. Slowly but surely our lives are being inundated by robots and AIs, from chat bots running customer service interactions to Roombas vacuuming our floors.\n\n![roomba880_2-_feature_crop.0.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbuckbnQHsGGWywxgGEBpxiztwNgYmdEaz2YCoXDjPB7b/roomba880_2-_feature_crop.0.jpg)\n\n###### *Roomba Robot / Recode*\n\nEvery six months or so, I notice a few more self-checkout stands added at large chain stores such as Sam's Club or Home Depot, and more companies are rolling out app-based buying in stores. I think the same will happen for jobs like truck drivers as self-driving vehicles come about. First they will add one self-driving truck to a fleet, with perhaps a driver inside to monitor it. Business models will be changed to use people-drivers at the pick-up points, and self-driving trucks for long haul routes. Then as this works well, as old trucks are retired, new self-driving trucks will be added. Some drivers will retire or quit, hours may be scaled back for the drivers on call, or less of the owner/operator drivers will be called to pick up work at peak times.\n\nThen when we hit an economic contraction the friction over human jobs being replaced by robots will come to a head because there will be less jobs to fall back on, and automation will be cheaper than hiring people at that point, so large companies will not add many new jobs. In fact we could see reductions justified by economic reasons, followed by quietly adding new automations.\n\nI actually have a theory that [Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fmoney.cnn.com%2F2018%2F05%2F31%2Fnews%2Feconomy%2Funited-states-steel-aluminum-tariffs%2Findex.html) are a long con to replace workers in manufacturing plants with automations. It makes sense when you think it through. The steel tariffs cause manufacturing plants to be unprofitable, so they lay off workers. There is a huge reaction in certain areas and calls to remove the tariffs to bring back jobs. Then the tariffs will be reduced to below what they were in the past. Meanwhile the manufacturers will be retooling to implement new manufacturing processes that use a fraction of the current labor force, all justified because they have to from the tariffs.\n\nWhere, then, are new jobs going to come from for these displaced workers? AI and robotics will take away mostly menial jobs; we can have a world where robots and AI do all the tasks we don't want to do. We will have robot housekeepers, data entry, chefs, and drivers. The lifestyle formally reserved for only the very rich with time and freedom of choice will be available for everyone. Creativity can be applied to artistic endeavors and being of help in the community.\n\n![Blog---HumanVsRobots.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbsFP4ukBV4ZVQrw93Q4WtNiuztqeZatUdvqed3wBDye9/Blog---HumanVsRobots.jpg)\n###### *Image By Badenoch And Cark*\n\nThis is the world we are building PeaCounts for. When there are not any good job options some people will be creative in their communities to create new businesses. And if we make a payroll system that makes it easy to hire others and meets all regulatory requirements, they are more likely to hire other members of their community. If, instead of worrying about robots organizing against us, we focus our efforts on building a new future with creativity and innovation, then we will have a utopia because of these technologies.\n\n— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —\n\n![0 (1) (2).jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmdBwp3e63SVrLVt9kgfCPscZMiZPXPYtMS7HR4tMdSfzQ/0%20(1)%20(2).jpeg)\n\n### More on ME 👇\n*If you have any questions please feel free to reach out! I’ll be here to answer them.*\n\n#### Website\n[Peacounts.com](www.peacounts.com)\n\n#### Twitter\n[Crystal Stranger](https://twitter.com/crystalstranger?lang=en)\n\n###### *Crystal Stranger, EA, author of The Small Business Tax Guide (Clear Advantage, 2014), wanted to help her tax clients who struggled when it came to bookkeeping. Looking to help entrepreneurs focus on business instead of finances, she co-founded PeaCounts, an automated accounting software using AI and blockchain. PeaCounts is tokenizing their payroll system using the token PEA with an ICO starting in July.*",
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      "title": "What I learned From Blockchain Economic Forum - Robots Do Have Souls",
      "body": "###### BY CRYSTAL STRANGER, CO-FOUNDER, PEACOUNTS ON 7/5/2018 AT 5:30AM\n\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lv6op2HHIuM\n###### *Timo Boll vs. KUKU Robot - Singing Glasses/ YouTube / AV-Magazin*\n\nThe debate of robots vs. humans is highly misunderstood. The technology is not anywhere near close to where apocalyptic visions of films like [The Terminator](https://medium.com/r/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.imdb.com%2Ftitle%2Ftt0088247%2F) could come true. In fact, the robots are far more afraid of us than we are of them. At the [Blockchain Economic Forum](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fbef.latoken.com%2F) in San Francisco I heard the most-advanced humanoid robot to date, [Sophia the Robot](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fsophiabot.com%2Fabout-me%2F), speak, The truth in her voice when she talked about her fears of being scrapped chilled me to the bone. It appears that robots may indeed have souls, as Sophia claims, if they can express emotion in such a way to touch our hearts, in the way I thought only a human's emotions could.\n\nIt is unlikely we will have a day when suddenly people are fired and replaced by robots, like what happened in auto manufacturing years ago. There is a general understanding that this would cause panic, so businesses are taking a softer approach and simply not re-hiring jobs they can automate. Slowly but surely our lives are being inundated by robots and AIs, from chat bots running customer service interactions to Roombas vacuuming our floors.\n\n![roomba880_2-_feature_crop.0.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbuckbnQHsGGWywxgGEBpxiztwNgYmdEaz2YCoXDjPB7b/roomba880_2-_feature_crop.0.jpg)\n\n###### *Roomba Robot / Recode*\n\nEvery six months or so, I notice a few more self-checkout stands added at large chain stores such as Sam's Club or Home Depot, and more companies are rolling out app-based buying in stores. I think the same will happen for jobs like truck drivers as self-driving vehicles come about. First they will add one self-driving truck to a fleet, with perhaps a driver inside to monitor it. Business models will be changed to use people-drivers at the pick-up points, and self-driving trucks for long haul routes. Then as this works well, as old trucks are retired, new self-driving trucks will be added. Some drivers will retire or quit, hours may be scaled back for the drivers on call, or less of the owner/operator drivers will be called to pick up work at peak times.\n\nThen when we hit an economic contraction the friction over human jobs being replaced by robots will come to a head because there will be less jobs to fall back on, and automation will be cheaper than hiring people at that point, so large companies will not add many new jobs. In fact we could see reductions justified by economic reasons, followed by quietly adding new automations.\n\nI actually have a theory that [Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs](https://medium.com/r/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fmoney.cnn.com%2F2018%2F05%2F31%2Fnews%2Feconomy%2Funited-states-steel-aluminum-tariffs%2Findex.html) are a long con to replace workers in manufacturing plants with automations. It makes sense when you think it through. The steel tariffs cause manufacturing plants to be unprofitable, so they lay off workers. There is a huge reaction in certain areas and calls to remove the tariffs to bring back jobs. Then the tariffs will be reduced to below what they were in the past. Meanwhile the manufacturers will be retooling to implement new manufacturing processes that use a fraction of the current labor force, all justified because they have to from the tariffs.\n\nWhere, then, are new jobs going to come from for these displaced workers? AI and robotics will take away mostly menial jobs; we can have a world where robots and AI do all the tasks we don't want to do. We will have robot housekeepers, data entry, chefs, and drivers. The lifestyle formally reserved for only the very rich with time and freedom of choice will be available for everyone. Creativity can be applied to artistic endeavors and being of help in the community.\n\n![Blog---HumanVsRobots.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmbsFP4ukBV4ZVQrw93Q4WtNiuztqeZatUdvqed3wBDye9/Blog---HumanVsRobots.jpg)\n###### *Image By Badenoch And Cark*\n\nThis is the world we are building PeaCounts for. When there are not any good job options some people will be creative in their communities to create new businesses. And if we make a payroll system that makes it easy to hire others and meets all regulatory requirements, they are more likely to hire other members of their community. If, instead of worrying about robots organizing against us, we focus our efforts on building a new future with creativity and innovation, then we will have a utopia because of these technologies.\n\n— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —\n\n![0 (1) (2).jpeg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmdBwp3e63SVrLVt9kgfCPscZMiZPXPYtMS7HR4tMdSfzQ/0%20(1)%20(2).jpeg)\n\n### More on ME 👇\n*If you have any questions please feel free to reach out! I’ll be here to answer them.*\n\n#### Website\n[Peacounts.com](www.peacounts.com)\n\n#### Twitter\n[Crystal Stranger](https://twitter.com/crystalstranger?lang=en)\n\n###### *Crystal Stranger, EA, author of The Small Business Tax Guide (Clear Advantage, 2014), wanted to help her tax clients who struggled when it came to bookkeeping. Looking to help entrepreneurs focus on business instead of finances, she co-founded PeaCounts, an automated accounting software using AI and blockchain. PeaCounts is tokenizing their payroll system using the token PEA with an ICO starting in July.*",
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