ICO Blues: Status Raises $64 Million (So Far) But Leaves Buyers Waiting

An ethereum-based messaging app held an initial coin offering today, drawing in more than $50m worth of the cryptocurrency ether – as well as broad complaints from would-be investors.

At press time, the team behind Status, which is developing a mobile-based messenger and browser app, had raised 182,000 ETH – an amount worth roughly $64m in ether at current market prices.

Network data points to the creation of approximately 1.63bn tokens, with sales drawn from 3,341 accounts on the ethereum network.

Yet the sale quickly ran into headwinds as users began sending transactions to the announced smart contract address before it began. That backlog accelerated as more users tried to purchase tokens, triggering reports of failed transactions and accusations that the sale itself was flawed from the start.

But it wasn't just the network itself that got bogged down, according to posts on social media.

Wallet service MyEtherWallet saw a big uptick in activity, posting a notice to its website (since removed) that stated "if your [transaction] is not urgent, we recommend NOT SENDING TODAY".

Etherscan, a popular ethereum blockchain explorer, had to switch traffic to a backup site amid what founder Matthew Tan‏ called "the mania" among buyers.

For more:http://www.coindesk.com/ico-blues-status-raises-58-million-leaves-buyers-waiting/