initial coin offering
noun
: the first sale of a cryptocurrency to the public conducted for the purpose of raising funds (as to support a start-up)
Coinciding with the substantial growth in cryptocurrencies, companies and individuals increasingly have been using initial coin offerings to raise capital for their businesses and projects.—
Jay Clayton
Jay Claytoncalled also ICO
Examples of initial coin offering in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Floyd Mayweather paid over $600,000 to settle charges about undisclosed promotion of initial coin offerings.
—Kori Hale, Forbes.com, 11 July 2025
In 2017, protocols such as decentralized exchanges began to emerge, contributing to the growth of initial coin offerings.
—Cathy Ross, Forbes, 6 Mar. 2025
Polybius raised $25 million in an initial coin offering from outside investors.
—Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 31 May 2024
Elements of this idea bear a relationship to an initially underappreciated benefit of blockchain technology—the financial innovation known as initial coin offerings.
—IEEE Spectrum, 1 Dec. 2023
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Kori Hale, Forbes.com, 11 July 2025
In 2017, protocols such as decentralized exchanges began to emerge, contributing to the growth of initial coin offerings.
—Cathy Ross, Forbes, 6 Mar. 2025
Polybius raised $25 million in an initial coin offering from outside investors.
—Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 31 May 2024
Elements of this idea bear a relationship to an initially underappreciated benefit of blockchain technology—the financial innovation known as initial coin offerings.
—IEEE Spectrum, 1 Dec. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Initial coin offering.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/initial%20coin%20offering. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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