The Debate Surrounding Islamic Coin: Fraud or Advancement?

• Islamic Coin (ISLM) is a well-known Shariah-compliant cryptocurrency initiative that describes itself as “ethics-first digital money.”
• To date, ISLM has raised nearly $984K on the US-based venture platform Republic.

Rumors and news regarding hacks and scams can spread rapidly within the cryptocurrency sector. Currently, Islamic Coin, a Shariah-compliant initiative that secured significant funding of $400 million in June, is under considerable scrutiny and facing allegations.

Islamic Coin (ISLM) serves as the native cryptocurrency for HAQQ, a layer-1 blockchain. This initiative was launched with the aim of enhancing Islamic finance. The public token offering for this deflationary token commenced on OpenDeal Broker LLC, a subsidiary of the US-based venture platform Republic, in mid-September.

Intense Scrutiny Surrounds Islamic Coin

The ongoing funding and token offering of Islamic Coin (ISLM) on Republic continues to attract criticism and allegations of scams from notable figures within the cryptocurrency community.

This is so funny
public sale at a valuation of $30b (yes) raising $43m
Every single person that invests in this will lose money. pic.twitter.com/KO6MOOtPA8

— Grinding Poet (@GrindingPoet) September 17, 2023

Recently, at the crypto event — Token 2049 — the project generated significant attention within the Web3 community. However, despite the increasing excitement, several critiques and warnings have been directed at the initiative, claiming it to be a scam.

IslamicCoin is a scam. They got a lot of recognition in Token2049. It's going to hurt once they bust.
All the names of "Sheikhs" and "Islamic council" they got on board, have no real understanding of the industry. Everybody is there to make a quick buck at the expense of retail.

— Roshan – GoSats.io (@roshanaslam21) September 25, 2023

The extension of ISLM’s Reg D (the SEC Regulation D) public token offering period on Republic has fueled additional speculation. Despite this, the project continues to reassure its community with regular updates. The question remains: Will the initiative be able to endure the weight of the negative claims?

Speculative Remarks on Republic’s Disclaimer?

As per the latest update, ISLM has raised approximately $984,682 from 1,305 investors on Republic, with nearly 6 days left until the funding campaign concludes. Reportedly, the established conditions of the ongoing ISLM funding on Republic are as follows: a token price of $0.3, a minimum investment of $50, a maximum of $1 million, and a funding target of $43 million.

Here are several statements made by OpenDeal Broker LLC and Republic regarding Islamic Coin’s public offering that are intended to be emphasized to every cryptocurrency investor and enthusiast:

• The ISLM offering is neither endorsed nor rejected by any regulatory body, 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 does not represent equity in the companies.

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

• Supporting 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 total.”

• The disclaimer also stated, “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 regarding their forthcoming ‘Gold-pegged stablecoin.’ According to the project’s founder, Mohammed AlKaff AlHashmi, Islamic banks both within and outside the UAE have agreed to support this initiative. Islamic Coin has planned to make further announcements in Q1 2024.

Will the Shariah-compliant initiative establish solid trust as an innovation or be revealed as a scam? Share your views @The_NewsCrypto.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not represent any organizational position. Readers are encouraged to evaluate information and consider various perspectives for a well-rounded understanding.