Hello everyone,
ICOindex.com has been contacted by Monaco team member who expressed interest in our verification process. We went through all information about Monaco ICO and we found a lot of information that needs to be clarified. At this moment we decided to list Monaco ICO in the suspicious category until the team is able to provide us with the following information that we list on our website.
http://icoindex.com/profile/monaco-mco-1Hope The Monaco team will be answer that all question there are 13 question which I think some of question are pretty important,that just make sure all investors are secure and the project itself will going smootly
Hi Everyone,
Please find the answers provided by our team to ICOindex below.
Thanks,
Kris
1) Can you please send me the link to your Github code repository?
Our Smart Contracts were developed by TokenMarket and audited by CoinFabrik.
https://github.com/TokenMarketNethttps://github.com/CoinFabrikWe do not have Monaco Github code repository at this moment.
2) I have read many paid press releases, but I would like to see some unpaid articles as well. Could you send me links to articles mentioning Monaco card?
https://mona.co/press.htmlWe are continuously updating the press page as new coverage comes in.
3) Has VISA company approved Monaco card or have you already closed a deal with VISA?
3a) If yes could you please send me the terms of this deal?
We are under NDAs with our partners, so obviously we can't send you the terms of our commercial arrangements.
We have an agreement with a principal member of Visa, who will act as the issuer of Monaco cards; in turn, we are in the process of becoming a Visa program manager
4) In the video about Monaco card, Kris Marszalek claims that you have worked on Monaco card for almost 12 months. Do you have any material that could confirm this? It can be for example a team chat like slack with the history of your team messages.
Our HK company was incorporated on 30th June 2016. The first press coverage of our product was released after we got accepted into Fintech Supercharger, the #1 fintech accelerator in Hong Kong.
https://www.crowdfundinsider.com/2016/11/92176-supercharger-fintech-accelerator-announces-8-new-startups-hong-kong-fintech-week-starts/5) In the video was mentioned Monaco app. I could not find it on Google play so I suppose it is still in development. Could you please send me the working prototype or any beta version that your team has created so far?
We are going to have a closed beta for a selected group of our users in late July/ early August.
The release date of our apps has been set for 31 Aug 2017.
6) In the video was mentioned "Forecasted appreciation of Asset Contract value to ~$500MM by 2022" What does this mean and which analysis supports this forecast?
Please refer to the whitepaper, it's described at length there.
7) Kris Marszalek claims in the video that:
"You only spend exact increment in Ether or Bitcoin. Just enough to cover the VISA transaction. So, as a result, you are able to save 30-40 EUR on every 500 EUR you spend on Monaco card"
What is the saving of 30-40 EUR compared to? Is it comparison to using a fiat debit card, credit card or something else?
How are you going to achieve saving EUR30-40 on every EUR500 equivalent spent?
It is compared to selling your cryptocurrency on an exchange or through a service like coinbase and subsequently spending it in foreign currency on a debit or credit card issued by a high street bank.
We're achieving the savings by offering our customers perfect interbank exchange rates without any markups and free top-up with cryptocurrency.
Another claim from the video:
"They are going to save 5-8 times more on perfect interbank exchange rates that we provide."
How can you achieve the perfect interbank exchange rates and what are these exchanges compared to? Do you have a special deal with VISA? If yes I would like to see the contract.
As described in the whitepaper, we have built proprietary technology, that allows us to offer these rates to our customers as a customer acquisition tool. This has nothing to do with our Visa agreement. In fact, our rates will be more competitive than standard Visa rates.
9) Rafael Melo claims in the video:
"Given the interest that the product has received over the past 6 months, it is likely that demand will exceed supply"
Who expressed interest in the Monaco card when there was no public communication of Monaco card before mid-May 2017?
We were referring to the fact that we were chosen in early November to be one of 8 startups to join a leading fintech accellerator in Hong Kong, we were selected from a group of over 200 companies.
10) In the video was mentioned that the project was self-funded. What was your initial budget and how was the money used? How are you going to spend the money raised in the ICO? Do you have a detailed business plan?
The details of our business plan are listed in the whitepaper.
11) GmbH is a legal status of a company in German-speaking countries. If the company is "in formation" it has no legal status and therefore there is no reason to use GmbH in the name of the company. How is it possible that on your official website is written "Monaco Technology GmbH" when the company is still in formation?
It is common to have a company "in formation", we are following legal advise from our Swiss counsel here. The incorporation of the Swiss entity will be completed before the Token Sale is finished.
12) On the official website Mona.co the description of Kris Marszalek CEO says:
"Serial Entrepreneur in Southeast Asia Internet industry, 2x from $0 to $100m in revenue and 2 exits. CEO at Ensogo, Founder at BEECRAZY (sold for US$21mm to iBuy Group in 2013)."
Which companies did Kris start that had "2x from $0 to $100m in revenue and 2 exits"?
This information is publicly available on Kris' LinkedIn profile.
13) On the LinkedIn profile, I have found that Kris worked for Ensogo. On the Facebook page of Ensogo lot of people are complaining the company is a scam. Could Kris comment on these accusations?
Please refer to the 10min video answer by our CEO:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCL2gVoBdEw14) Retrieved from Ensogo Wikipedia website (
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ensogo):
"On June 21, 2016, Ensogo announced that it will shut down all South East Asia operation (including Hong Kong) and its CEO Kris Marszalek has resigned; it also requests ASX to suspend shares trading. The unprecedented shutdown affected operations in several countries; workers in Singapore found the office was closed, Hong Kong sellers call for police investigation of fraud and certain stores in Thailand rejecting deals purchased by consumers, though the Consumer Protection Board is expected to summon Ensogo executives for remedial issues."
What was the reason for fraud investigation of Ensogo? Has Kris ever been investigated for fraud? If yes what was the result?
Ensogo is controlled by Patrick Grove, one of the top internet entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia and networth exceeding $400m according to Forbes.
It is worth noting that Ensogo appointed E&Y, a highly reputable big4 accounting firm to manage the process of exit from the region. Ensogo is still listed on the Australian Stock Exchange and has no liabilities with approximately $5m cash balance as of the end of last quarter.
As explained in the video above, Kris never agreed with the Ensogo Board's decision regarding the exit from the e-commerce business. This disagreement resulted in his resignation. He was not involved in the execution of the shutdown and does not agree with or support the way in which it was executed. Kris was never investigated for fraud of any kind and he has limited information about what happened with the company after he left.
