Headphone manufacturer Monster Products Inc. has applied to U.S. regulators to launch a giant $300 million Initial Coin Offering (ICO), according to a filing from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) website.
Monster, which became infamous for signing away the rights to its Beats headphones, plans to issue 500 million Monster Money Network (MMNY) tokens, 60 percent of which will be offered in an ICO when a single token will be available for $1. The SEC filing represents a registration of MMNY tokens as possible securities under U.S. law.
The company will use the funds to develop the platform, based on the Ethereum blockchain, with tokens serving as a means for making purchases on the platform.
Monster breaks down the development process into three stages:
- Stage I: establish Monster Money Network to provide the basic transactional functions, such as Monster Money Wallets and processing transactions in MMNY Tokens;
- Stage II: establish a private off-chain platform where micro-transactions can be completed without or with very limited transaction costs caused by mining activities (“gas”).
- Stage III: complete Monster’s blockchain and integrate such blockchain to the operating systems of the Company, such as marketing, accounting and auditing, payroll services, inventory control and shipping management.
The company knows what to do even if things don’t go as planned. From the filing:
The holders of the Tokens may convert all or part of their Tokens to Common Stock of the Company at a ratio of four Tokens to one share of Common Stock in the event that (i) our Tokens shall not have become publicly tradable on June 30, 2020 or (ii) our Tokens shall have ceased trading publicly due to certain governmental enforcement actions on June 30, 2020.
Monster is not the only established company looking to raise fresh capital in an ICO. Previously, we’ve talked about similar efforts by Kodak and the messenger app Telegram. This, as far as we can tell, could be a new way for companies to raise fund, bypassing bankers along the way. A sign of (new) times, or what?