Token Summit in New York explores brave new world of blockchain ICOs

The Token Summit is a new conference dedicated to discussing the emerging blockchain-based tokenized economy, to be held in New York City on May 25 2017. It will serve as a bookend to the industry's leading conference series, Coindesk's Consensus, which takes place from May 22 to May 24, 2017.

Token Summit, organised by renowned blockchain author, investor, and entrepreneur William Mougayar, taking place at NYU Stern School of Business, will feature 40 illustrious speakers and is expected to draw 400 attendees from around the world.

Token Summit will feature detailed presentations, expert panels, interviews with entrepreneurs, and major new product announcements related to token-based products or offerings. Sessions from the agenda will include:

• The new value chain of crypto assets
• Best practices in token offerings
• The new business models powered by tokens
• The valuations of crypto assets
• The emergence of cryptocurrency funds
• Legal and compliance practices
• Governance considerations
• The value of attention tokens
• Quantitative market analysis
• Future scenarios for the token economy

William Mougayar said: "Cryptographically secured digital assets and blockchain technology are dramatically changing the world of finance, investments, startups, and venture capital, while spurring business model innovation on a global scale. Token Summit will be a seminal event for those who want to learn about the newest methods of capital raising, and the ways in which tokenised money is disrupting our economy. Our distinguished speakers will explore the economics, valuations, governance, regulations, compliance and the full spectrum of best practices around blockchain-based tokens, protocols, applications, and crypto-assets. We are at the dawn of a new economy, one that rivals the early days of the Web in terms of potential innovation and wealth creation."

Mougayar will be joined by co-host and co-curator Nick Tomaino, Principal at Runa Capital and founder of The Control, an online publication that chronicles blockchain cryptocurrency technology and startups.

Mougayar, a seasoned angel investor, will explore the nuances of the ICO universe, a controversial but rapid method of funding for fintech companies aiming to bring products to market quickly. Many projects are delivering remarkable solutions to real world problems, primarily because they have access to funds that a VC may not have invested due to time or financial constraints. The industry today is worth an estimated combined $40 bn (€36, £31bn) six times what it was worth in Q1 last year.

The event will feature industry leaders, CEOs, and founders from the pioneering companies writing the next chapter of blockchain technology including Aragon, ARK Invest, Augur, Blockstack, Brave Software, Civic, Coinbase, ConsenSys, Golem, ICONOMI, IPFS/Filecoin, Livepeer, MakerDAO, Numerai, ShapeShift, Stabl, Sia, Steemit, Storj, Tezos, Userfeeds, and 0x. Entrepreneurs will be complemented by leading lawyers, investors, and analysts who are at the forefront of practices focused on blockchain-based tokenised models.