Cryptocurrency Comes To Esports: Betting Site Unikrn Launches ICO

Here comes Unikoin Gold

Rahul Sood, the founder and chief executive of Unikrn, said he believed there was a natural fit between esports betting and cryptocurrencies after his company announced an offering for UnikoinGold, an Ethereum blockchain-based token.

Unikrn hopes to build on the success of its existing Unikoin token, which gives users the ability to bet on esports in regulated markets and win prizes in markets where Unikrn is not licensed to operate. The company has turned over a quarter of a billion tokens since launch two years’ ago.
“I think esports is at the cutting edge of sports and video games and crypto is at the cutting edge of commerce,” said Sood. “Since we already have the Unikoin, it only makes sense for us to turn it into a crypto.”

According to the white paper issued to promote the offering, the new UnikoinGold will give additional functionality to its previously centralized token system. Users will be able the trade the Ethereum blockchain-based ERC20 token on the open market. The market will decide the value of each coin.

Unikrn promises further benefits to UnikoinGold holders including exclusive immersive skill and spectator eSports products.

The old Unikoin will then become UnikoinSilver and users will still be able to earn, bet and compete anywhere in the world. Along with UnikoinGold holders, the Silver users will be able to acquire raffle tickets to win prizes. Those prizes include in-game item skins and gaming hardware.

Unikrn’s investors
Unikrn has a star-studded list of venture capital investors including:
Ashton Kutcher’s Sound Ventures
Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks
Shari Redstone’s Advancit Capital
Elizabeth Murdoch’s Freedland Ventures
500 Startups
Hyperspeed Ventures
Indicator Ventures
Binary Capital
Australian gambling giant Tabcorp

The company raised $10 million in 2015

It is not clear whether any of the original investors will be participating in the UnikoinGold offering. However, Binary has launched its own investment management company called Binary Financial. That company brokers large value cryptocurrency transactions as well as providing a proprietary crypto trading platform.

The token expertise for the UnikrnGold ICO is comes from CoinCircle. Erick Miller from Hyperspeed runs CoinCircle. He recently co-founded the Blockchain Lab with UCLA. CoinCircle will develop and help underwrite the first tranche of coin sales.

Gambling and cryptocurrencies
The attitude of gambling regulatory authorities towards cryptocurrencies is still in its nascent stages. However, Sood points out that the Isle of Man, where Unikrn holds a license, has already approved alternative currencies for betting in regulated environments.

“The Isle of Man is way ahead of the game,” he said.
However, Sood failed to answer questions with regard to the position of the UK Gambling Commission, where Unikrn is also licensed.

The commission has been far more cautious with regard to cryptocurrencies and has said previously that any operator wishing to accept digital currency as a means of payment “must satisfy themselves and the Commission that they can meet their obligations for anti-money laundering and for social responsibility.”

Its position with regard to an operator which has generated its own cryptocurrency remains unclear.

“We aim to work with all regulators to understand the ins and outs of a dedicated crypto betting platform,” said Sood.

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