Hanken Finance Day 2019

Initial Coin Offerings

Welcome to Hanken Finance Day 2019 with this year's theme being "Initial Coin Offerings".

Finance Day will start with breakfast at 8.30 and end at 12.00. During the seminar we will hear from Otso Manninen (Senior Economist, Macroprudential Policy Division, Bank of Finland), Gonul Colak (Professor of Finance, Hanken) and Sami Varonen (Leading Tax Specialist, Finnish Tax Administration - Individual Taxation Unit).

The programme will be in English. The seminar is free of charge and is open for Hanken alumni and students.

Programme

8.30-9.00       Breakfast
9.00-9.15       Welcoming words
9.15-10.00     Otso Manninen
10.00-10.30   Break
10.30-11.00    Sami Varonen
11.00-11.30    Gonul Colak
11.30-12:00    Discussion with Gonul Colak & Sami Varonen

Sign up here (by 1 April)

Topics

Otso Manninen:

ICOs of the Future: What is required from ICOs for them to outgrow their niche?

ICOs are often promoted as easier and non-regulated way of raising capital. This is not necessarily so and while ICOs provide an alternative funding model especially for start-ups, it has some specific pros and cons. In this presentation I will go through an overview of ICO related legislation as well as some key considerations for companies and investors considering of issuing / investing in ICOs. As ICOs may become more common in future they are more likely to become subject to specific (international) regulation and supervision. I will go through some initiatives on potential ICO regulation and key concerns in ICO funding model for authorities.

Sami Varonen:

ICO in Finland - tax issues for investors, companies?

There are no specific ICO tax rules in Finland. As the terms and conditions vary from case to case the tax consequences for an issuing company can be different in different ICOs. For investors buying ICO tokens does not usually trigger taxation. Investors should however bear in mind the current tax law interpretation regarding gains and losses from virtual tokens.

Gonul Colak:

Academic research on ICOs

Academic studies on ICOs has been growing rapidly together with the investors’ attention towards ICOs. The researchers have uncovered many interesting facts and patterns about all the ICOs issued across the Globe. Most importantly, the academics have reported several ICO characteristics that help investors identify the fraudulent ICOs from legitimate ones. We will report on those kind of practical issues useful for potential investors in cryptocurrencies.

Please contact alumni@hanken.fi if you have any questions regarding the seminar.