People often reserve the greatest anticipation and hype levels for Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) in the trendy crypto world. ICOs are crowdsourced fundraising sales usually used to launch novel tokens, services, and coins. 

People started viewing ICOs as a considerable risk for the everyday investor. This is because ICOs are very speculative since most are fraudulent, and only a few of them usually go on to see the tokens they launch successfully. 

Nevertheless, traders continue to watch the ICO space closely for the next big investment opportunity. The most effective way to identify an ICO with potential would be to look for those whose designs are similar to successful ICOs. 

This article examines the most popular ICOs in crypto history. 

1. Ethereum

Right behind Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) has made a name among the most valuable digital assets in the world. Led by Vitalik Buterin, ETH isn’t just a regular digital asset; it’s a decentralised ledger for building decentralised apps, commonly called smart technology.

Ethereum’s attention and success stem from its various applications. Its smart contract site can assist with digitising and streamlining various business processes that are currently inefficient. 

ETH first entered the crypto space four years after BTC’s boom in 2011. Since its launch, Ethereum has been churning out a remarkable 152,500% ROI. Vitalik Buterin first sold ETH tokens, valued at $0.44. In 2022 the price of Ethereum is over $2000 USD. 

This substantial increase in value is due to Ethereum’s potential for growth, its application in smart contracts, and its corporate interest.

2. Ark

Ark excels at partnerships. Ark unique is in its fast-loading website, designed to integrate digital assets into its blockchain. Like most ICOs, Ark’s popularity is attributed to its decentralised nature. 

Available in 11 countries, Ark has made a name for itself in the digital asset space, contributing to investors being excited about the project. 

The project’s ROI is currently at 35,400%, a notable gain, making it one of the most popular ICOs. 

3. NEO

Previously called Antshares, NEO is an open-source blockchain gaining ground in the crypto industry. It was established by Da Hongfei, and is frequently termed China’s ETH. NEO uses digitised assets, smart contract applications, and decentralised commerce. 

The names backing NEO include the Chinese government and Microsoft. These names have been an essential part of the blockchain’s popularity. The founders of NEO have high hopes for the future. 

NEO has a competitive edge since the Chinese market offers great potential for blockchain use cases. However, it’s difficult for foreign firms to tap into this market. Prospective investors feel that China will embrace NEO so that it doesn’t embrace foreign projects. 

NEO has a feasible application, and it intends to build a blockchain that’ll represent legitimate proof of ownership with overall societal acceptance. The ability to bring crypto-assets and smart contracts together in a “smart assets site” makes NEO unique. 

To prove just how popular NEO has been since its inception, its initial ICO in October 2015 raised $550,000. In September the following year, its second ICO raised $4.5 million.

4. IOTA

IOTA has succeeded by integrating elements from blockchain technology and the Internet of Things (IoT). Luckily, this mode of operation has worked well for IOTA, allowing it to achieve a 332,500% ROI. 

IOTA is different from other projects since it’s among the digital assets that use Tangle to carry out transactions rather than using blockchains. Tangle eliminates the scalability and transaction charge issues that plague other digital assets, including BTC. 

IOTA users have to follow an authentication process when sending funds. Consequently, its decentralised transaction ledger creates a zero-charge transaction system. Therefore, network participants are not charged any fees to authenticate transactions.

The project has always attracted significant interest from investors, with its first ICO in 2015 raising over $400,000. According to experts, the project’s popularity is because it has zero-charge transactions that don’t need an actual blockchain. 

The lack of blockchain means there aren’t any scaling issues like with other crypto assets. Hence, users can utilise IOTA for IoT networks. 

5. NXT

Founded in 2013 by a developer called BCNext, NXT is one of the earliest and most successful ICOs. It was initially built as a blockchain site for the financial services field and applications and has become one of the longest-standing blockchain projects.

In its first fundraising, the project raised $16,800, which the founder earmarked for creating its proprietary open-source PoS (Proof-of-Stake) consensus system for its crypto asset, NXT. 

NXT is different from other projects since it has a marketplace, a messaging system, and asset exchange. It stood out to investors because it was one of the first sites to offer blockchain. Now, corporations and banks can use the NXT marketplace to build blockchain applications.

Bottom Line

Setting up a successful ICO depends on value, not luck or fate. All the ICOs in this article boast of something worthwhile that makes them attractive to investors. Investor backing is an essential element for an ICO to succeed.