ICO is Initial Coin Offering and is the pioneer in crypto crowdfunding. This method is simple, reliable, and quick in gaining the funds one wants. A good level of marketing is definitely needed to keep the pace going.
The project team that aims to raise funds creates tokens and sells them during the ICO. The people who buy them are the investors and they either gain discounts on the products or get a share from the company.
Once the tokens are ready and marketed, they are listed on the exchange platforms. They become coins there. The coins hold value and can be used to access the company's benefits.
So, that was an outline on the ICO.
Then here comes IEO
Imagine doing the whole ICO on an exchange platform - 'that's IEO in short. If you have to buy tokens from the project team, you 'can't do it unless you have an account on the exchange platform. This is not a big task. As such, you need to hold an exchange account to buy and sell your cryptos.
There are other restrictions on IEO. Not everyone can buy tokens. The number of investors may be drastically less compared to ICO. This regulates the security, keeps the whole process organized, and prevents scamming to an extent. This is one of the main reasons many people choose IEO to raise funds despite it being a little tough.
Now, let's jump to STO.
STO stands for Security Token Offering. In simple words just like ICO, STOs are securities in the form of tokens. For instance, if you have registered property, you usually get the documents in hard copies or in digital forms it is PDF. The same thing in blockchain in the form of tokens.
Hope you have a clear view of what ICOs, IEOs, and STOs are. Are you looking for more details? Keep watching this space.