Anti-virus pioneer and crypto evangelist John McAfee[1] tweeted that he will no longer work with initial coin offerings[2] (ICOs) or promote them due to “threats” from the U.S.[3] Securities and Exchange Commission[4] (SEC). The SEC declined to comment on his statement.
Due to SEC threats, I am no longer working with ICOs nor am I recommending them, and those doing ICOs can all look forward to arrest. It is unjust but it is reality. I am writing an article on an equivalent alternative to ICOs which the SEC cannot touch. Please have Patience.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee)
In April, McAfee revealed[6] that he charges $105,000 per tweet to promote cryptocurrency projects and products. McAfee claimed that if you divided the cost by his total number of Twitter followers, the “cost per investor reached” is only $0.13, to which he added, “This is orders of magnitude less than any other approach.”
In January, Cointelegraph asked McAfee[7] in an interview whether anyone had tried to pay him for promoting a project or product, and if so, which projects. McAfee replied:
“I would say definitely they tried to pay me. I'm not going to talk about my personal finances where I make my money or from who. I set up on stage as it’s my business and it should be everybody's business. And actually, I think it's rude to even ask such questions of people. No offense.”
When asked whether he felt responsible for the pump-and-dump schemes that sometimes follow his endorsement, he said, “Absolutely not.”
Last month, McAfee announced plans[8] to release his own “fiat” currency backed by cryptocurrency, which will be redeemable for
