J.R., under the name “dacoinminster,” and Ron, under the name “ripper234,” went back and forth in the forum for a bit, but ultimately the sale went ahead as planned, raising over 5,120 bitcoins, or around $500,000 at the time. A foundation was set up after the sale and Ron joined as one of seven board members. This was the first time a blockchain startup had raised funds by selling its own digital token. The crowdfunding mechanism would later be known as an initial coin offering, or ICO, a play on words with initial public offering, or IPO.
