#1: Concerns on how we sell tokens, and why token projects in crypto dropped significantly in value

Regarding the claim, we do pump and dumps: This is blatantly false. We operate as a venture capital firm. This means we invest in lots of companies, and we only do this after performing rigorous due diligence. Some of our tokens are down significantly – so is the entire market. Most of our tokens/equity are locked due to our vesting schedule, when the tokens depreciate in value, we are the ones exposed to the risk, when token founders give up on projects, we are the ones exposed to the risks, we have no incentive to depreciate the value of our deployed capital. The most we can do is support projects as much as possible from investments or acceleration actions, but in the end, it’s up to the project’s leaders, its tech, and the market’s view of its utility to determine the demand.

 

About token dumping: As said above, we only get a certain percentage (usually 5-10% of tokens) unlocked each month after our purchase of the token, due to the lengthy vesting schedules we end up with from investing in pre-public rounds. This is all included in the SAFTs we sign the projects, and they send us the unlocked tokens every month per the agreements. We then decide whether we sell the token based on the following factors: burn rate, expenses, risk profile, and liquidity. This is to ensure our firm stays liquid and does not end up underwater from a fraction of projects we’ve invested in, which may inevitably fail to meet market expectations.

 

#2: Questions about one of our outdated services offered

 

The Twitter verification service we offered (prior to Twitter Blue updates) was not done using a “Twitter insider”, as the video implies. What we did for such clients is set up multi-faceted press campaigns, getting them enough coverage in sources deemed reliable by Twitter’s Terms of Service (ToS), which made them ready for approval by Twitter once they applied. This service is obviously not something we offer anymore, but it was always done ethically and without any violation of Twitter’s ToS (as this was not payment for getting verified, it was payment for assistance with press coverage which Twitter required at that time).

 

#3: Questions about some of our outreach team members being removed from VC Telegram groups:

 

Members of our outreach team have indeed been removed from a very small number (negligible) VC groups on telegram in the past. 

 

This is mostly due to the amount of deal flow we sent to those channels at the time. But, more importantly to us, because of the inadequate performance of a prior team assigned to this, who was failing to properly message our services to potential clients. 

 

We identified this issue and our HR dept brought in a better team of personnel immediately. This is something we consistently keep an eye on, to ensure those who represent the image of IBC meet our executive standards. We welcome feedback from all our colleagues in the space, and we enact appropriate measures internally if any issues are identified.

 

#4: Removing projects from the website

 

Removing the portfolio projects from our website is definitely something we did. Due to the popularity of our Rondtable show, and some divisive high-profile figures who came on, we elected to remove the limited amount of projects from our portfolio that were listed on ibcgroup.io for now, as we wanted to protect our clients from harassment (especially during this dark bear market). We still believe this was the best choice, as we have seen threats and other vitriol thrown already at some of the FTX insiders and whistleblowers that have come onto the stage, revealing inside information that many have not wanted to get out. Once the intensity of this situation blows over, we intend to once again list projects affiliated with our investment/accelerator arms, as we believe transparency is necessary.

 

#5: Outdated video of our CEO in a podcast interview

 

Regarding the short video our CEO Mario covered about leveraging other companies’ strategies: this is very normal on a corporate level to do (having competitive intel). Indeed business intelligence firms have employed such techniques on a consistent basis to discover information about the competitive landscape. This is not something we have a service for at IBC, nor is this an official statement by Mario on behalf of IBC, this is merely a statement made to a podcast about the realities of how companies gather intel on each other.

 

We find it unfortunate that we weren’t contacted to tell our side of the story, before the video’s publishing. However, we cannot allow these claims to go on unrefuted and misinformation about our firm to spread. The video’s concerns are based on a complete lack of understanding of how Crypto VC firms operate. IBC has been in the space since 2017, is very well respected, and has worked with some of the industry’s leading projects.

 

That being said, we always welcome feedback from our partners and we believe transparency is necessary for this sector. So, please let us know if there are any other matters you would like us to address.

 

– Executive Team