Regarding ICOs, I have noticed a fair number of submissions to HN titled something along the lines of "[Insert market] ICO : sale opens [date]". These submissions are from new accounts with newly created Github and other social media handles with an anonymous user behind the submissions. Most of the submissions get flagged and the ICO never happens. Do these people think they can raise hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars anonymously with newly created accounts? It just screams scam.

All of the successful ICOs seem to have a team full of PHDs, investors, and seasoned entrepreneurs and they also have commitment from a few well known investors and entrepreneurs as social proof. Some even have "pre ICO sales" to reward their inner circle.

For people in the know, I have a few questions:

* Who invests in these ICOs apart from the "pre ICO investors" who are generally close friends of the founders?

* How do ICOs reach these people (I'm guessing a subset are clueless retail investors and the average Joe who gets excited by the words blockchain, cryptocurrency and ICO)?

* What is the legal status of ICOs?

* Are there any case studies regarding how successful ICOs take place?

(I have no plans of starting my own ICO, just want to understand how these ICOs work.)