This study explores the determinants of initial coin offering (ICO) success, where success is defined as the amount of capital a project could raise. ICOs are a tool for startups in the blockchain ecosystem to raise early capital with relative ease. The market for ICOs has grown at a rapid pace...

We analyse the triangle of Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) and cryptocurrencies, namely Bitcoin and Ethereum. So far, little is known about the relationship between ICOs, bitcoin and Ether prices. Hence, we employ both bitcoin and Ether prices but also the ICO amount to measure the future...

We study the extent of fraud in initial coin offerings (ICOs), and whether information disclosure prior to the issuance predicts fraud. We document different types of fraud, and that fraudulent ICOs are on average much larger than the sample average. Issuers that disclose their code on GitHub...

This paper introduces a machine learning approach to quantify altruism from the linguistic style of textual documents. We apply our method to a central question in (social) entrepreneurship: How does altruism impact entrepreneurial success? Specifically, we examine the effects of altruism on...

This paper considers a financing problem for an innovative firm that is launching a web-based platform. The entrepreneur, on one hand, faces a large degree of demand uncertainty on his product and on the other hand has to deal with incentive problems of professional blockchain participants who...

By analyzing data of more than 1,000 initial coin offerings (ICOs) obtained from seven different ICO information platforms, we investigate the effectiveness of signals used by entrepreneurs to foster ICO funding success. In particular, we examine the effectiveness of venture quality (human...

The Chinese blockchain industry and market have unique, unusual and idiosyncratic characteristics. Several established companies as well as startups in China have developed and deployed innovative solutions involving blockchain. On the other hand, some uses of blockchain such as initial coin...

Analogous to traditional Initial Public Offerings (IPO), Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) represent an emerging channel through which firms can access external funding using the new evolving digital financial market for tokens. However, while ICOs represent an alternative funding channel for...

Initial coin offerings (ICOs) have recently emerged as a new financing instrument for entrepreneurial ventures, spurring economic and academic interest. Nevertheless, the impact of exogenous and endogenous signals on the performance of ICOs as well as the effects of the cryptocurrency hype and...

Entrepreneurial finance markets are in a dynamic state. New market niches and players have developed and continue to emerge. The rules of the game and the methods for receiving financial backing have changed in many ways. This editorial and the special issue of Small Business Economics focus on...