ICO (initial coin offerings) have been used by scammers to con people out of their investments. ICOs have been used as a way for companies to raise capital. With the rise of the number of companies entering the market, ICO has proved useful for investors in choosing and backing their favorite companies. However, scammers and fraudsters have been known to use fake websites that resemble ICOs, asking their investors to deposit coins in faulty wallets.

One example is Centra Tech, a blockchain company that was backed by celebrities like DJ Khaled, Floyd mayweather. Centra Tech was sued for misleading investors and lying about their products. Another prominent example of a perfectly-executed ICO scam is the Confido affair in which investors lost upwards of 370,000 dollars.

It is worth noting, in addition to scams and failures, there are also parody ICOs, such as Useless Token where the creators themselves warn that no return should be expected and all investment will be lost. In this case, it cannot be considered a scam as parodic ICOs do not usually hide their nature.

How to avoid:

• Do your research.
• Dig into the blockchain company you are planning to back
• Do not let celebrity endorsements sway you.
• If you really want to invest in Bitcoin, go with the bigger, more trusted companies instead.

There is no one sure fire way to avoid Bitcoin scams. However, a good rule of thumb is to always do your research: red flags to look out for, recent scams, market trends. Contact us at for expert advice.