An equity-backed, dividend paying cryptocurrency from Steve Wozniak (co founder of Apple):  What is UNICOIN?  Unicoin is an equity-backed token with a unique cryptocurrency profile that was released last year by Steve Wozniak's Unicorn Hunters project. If you haven't heard of it, Unicorn Hunters is a streaming business reality show similar to Shark Tank. But there's a twist:  anyone can invest. The way Unicorn Hunters is doing venture capital aims to bring in smaller, retail investors, allowing them to get in on investments that are usually only accessible to people with lots of capital. Unicoin is part of the plan to implement that.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           As a securitized token, Unicoin is SEC compliant from the get-go. Part of the money raised when investors buy it will go into a VC fund that returns dividends to token holders. Back in March, Unicoin reached $375M in sales on its one year anniversary. It's not yet available on crypto exchanges because another goal of Unicoin is to combat the extreme volatility cryptocurrencies are known for and protect against inflation. Right now, there's a $1,000 minimum investment with the goal of bringing Unicoin's price to $1 before it's officially minted later this year. Unicoin wants to change the game. It's harnessing the clout and influence of big investors like Wozniak and bringing investing opportunities to everyone else in a new way. An equity-backed token with founders that are known and trusted - unlike many anonymously created cryptos - can bridge the world of traditional venture capital investing to those who have been kept out until now.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         How will Unicoin evolve:  Once enough accredited investors buy in, it will be released on exchanges for anyone to invest and dividends will be paid to token holders from equity stakes. Alex Konanykhin, CEO of Unicoin Hunters, says, "our shareholders-only $10M round was oversubscribed within 3 business days. Part of the goal, prior to releasing Unicoin on exchanges, is to create brand visibility, equity, and trust so Unicoin won't just fade into the sea of cryptocurrencies being created every day. This new kind of equity-backed cryptocurrency could potentially be an innovative hybrid model for traditional investing and crypto. With a centralized structure, SEC compliance, known and trusted founders, and use cases in traditional venture capital funding, Unicoin has one foot in TradFi (traditional funding). But as a cryptocurrency that anyone will be able to buy, hold, and receive dividends for, its other foot is stepping into the innovative FinTech world that has infinite potential.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Because of its hybrid nature, it may be a hard-sell for the average crypto investor who is looking for decentralization and the pure, unregulated nature of the crypto market today. Unicoin is definitely not a standard cryptocurrency, but it has a use case and investors who want to make a play on it will need to understand its unique value proposition.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     EMILY WEBER  -  DECENTRALPUBLISHING.COM