Cool Story BRO: French Startup Plans to Make ICOs Obsolete

France-based crypto asset issuance platform Tozex claims to have created a new vehicle for crypto financing that can offer firms a way out of the tough economic times due to the pandemic — the ‘Believers Reward Offering,’ or BRO.

Tozex claims that the BRO comprises “the first sustainable alternative” to initial coin offerings (ICOs) and security token offerings (STOs) — allowing businesses to access financing by borrowing stablecoins from investors worldwide. 

BROs will save SMEs 

The firm’s announcement makes grand claims for BROs, describing the BRO as an “anti-crisis business solution.” The document claims that the fundraising vehicle will help small to medium-sized enterprises “overcome tough economic times and open new financing possibilities.”

BRO offerings are conducted using Tozex’ blockchain-based crowd-lending protocol that leverages smart contracts to autonomously and transparently execute loans tied to a borrower’s  crypto collateral. Tozex claims that its system mitigates the risks of price manipulation and exit scams which can be associated with ICOs.

Despite BRO’s purportedly revolutionary design, Tozex will also offer ICO and STO services.

Tozex co-founder Remy Ozcan said he believes that token issuance vehicles like the BRO will soon expand beyond the blockchain sector and into the mainstream business community.

Coronavirus crises inspire opportunism

Tozex is not the first, and probably won’t be the last, in the crypto space to use the COVID-19 pandemic in its marketing efforts. 

In March, HashCash Consultants launched their ‘Corona Fund Index Cryptocurrency’, which was billed as offering the backing of an inverse-exchange-traded fund (ETF). However, when Cointelegraph spoke to HashCash Consultants, it was revealed that the token had no backing and thus no reason to correlate to an inverse ETF.