The Islamic Coin Controversy: Scam or Innovation?

• Islamic Coin (ISLM) is a popular Shariah-compliant crypto project that identifies itself as “ethics-first digital money.”
• ISLM raised nearly $984K on the US-based venture platform Republic till date.

News and speculation on hacks and scams crucially ignite like wildfire in the crypto realm. At present, Islamic Coin, a Shariah-compliant project that secured one of the largest fundings of $400 million in June, faces intense scrutiny and accusations.

Islamic Coin (ISLM) is the native cryptocurrency of HAQQ, a layer-1 blockchain. This project emerged in the market with the objective of strengthening Islamic finance. The public token offering of this deflationary token was initiated on OpenDeal Broker LLC, a subsidiary of US-based venture platform Republic, in mid-September.

Shadow of Scrutiny Casted Over Islamic Coin

The ongoing funding and token offering of Islamic Coin (ISLM) on Republic continues to garner criticisms and scam accusations from the popular members of the crypto community. 

Notably, in the recent crypto event — Token 2049 — the project generated an ample amount of buzz amid the Web3 community. However, despite the growing hype, a number of scrutinies and warnings have been directed at the project, alleging it to be a scam.

The extension of ISLM’s Reg D (the SEC Regulation D) public token offering period on Republic fuels further speculations. Neglecting these, the project is continually assuring its community with constant updates. The question arises: Will the project be able to withstand the intensity of the negative claims?

Highly Speculative Statements on Republic’s Disclaimer?

As of the recent update, ISLM has raised around $984,682 from 1,305 investors on Republic with nearly 6 days remaining until the closure of the funding campaign. Reportedly, the pre-set conditions of the ongoing ISLM funding on Republic are as follows: per token price at $0.3 and minimum investment of $50, maximum of $1 million with a funding goal of $43 million.

Here are a few declarations made by OpenDeal Broker LLC and Republic regarding Islamic Coin’s public offering that are intended to be highlighted to every crypto investor and enthusiast:

• The ISLM offering is neither approved nor disproved by any regulatory authority, including Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).

• The offering is made in ISLM tokens from ICNetwork Ltd and BoredGen DMCC, developers of the HAQQ blockchain, and is not equivalent to equity in the firms.

• The venture platform stated that affiliates of OpenDeal Broker LLC had financial interests in the offering or its sponsors and might have invested under more favorable terms, such as lower prices and extended lock-up periods. 

• Aiding this point, it has also been confirmed, “BoredGen DMCC will pay OpenDeal Broker LLC, a registered broker-dealer: 6 percent (6.0%) of the gross proceeds of tokens sold up to but not in excess of $2 million, and 5 percent (5%) of the gross proceeds for any amount raised in excess of $2 million at the time of closing, with a minimum fee to ODB of $25,000 in aggregate.”

• The disclaimer also included, “Neither OpenDeal Broker LLC nor Republic Advisory Services nor any of their affiliates has independently verified any of the information provided or makes any assurances as to the completeness, accuracy or reliability of any such information provided by BoredGen DMCC or its affiliated companies.”

Amid these controversies and negative speculations, the project tweeted an update on their upcoming ‘Gold-pegged stablecoin.’ According to the project’s founder, Mohammed AlKaff AlHashmi, Islamic banks both within and outside the UAE have come onboard to support this initiative. Islamic Coin has scheduled Q1 2024 as the time to make further announcements.

Will the Shariah-compliant project build up concrete trust as an innovation or be busted as a scam? Share your views @The_NewsCrypto.  

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not reflect any organizational stance. Readers are encouraged to assess information and explore various perspectives for a comprehensive understanding.