ICO Revival: Echo, Legion, and others turn speculative frenzy into structured investment

Written by: Stacy Muur

Compiled by: Luffy, Foresight News

Since the frenzy era of 2017, ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings) have finally returned to the market, but the operational mechanism is completely different from the chaotic situation of the past Gas wars. This is not a nostalgic journey, but a brand new market shaped by new infrastructure, more refined distribution designs, and clearer regulatory frameworks.

In 2017, anyone could raise millions of dollars in just a few minutes as long as they had an Ethereum contract and a white paper. At that time, there were no standardized compliance processes, no structured allocation models, and certainly no post-sale liquidity frameworks. Most investors entered blindly, and many watched their tokens plummet shortly after listing. As regulatory agencies stepped in to regulate, ICOs gradually faded out in the following years, replaced by venture capital rounds, SAFT (Simple Agreement for Future Tokens), exchange IEOs (Initial Exchange Offerings), and later, retrospective airdrops.

Now it is 2025, and the trend has reversed.

But the change is not that the project is issued at a lower valuation; in fact, the fully diluted valuation (FDV) is higher than ever. The real change lies in the access mechanism.

Launchpads no longer rely on pure speed competition or gas wars. Instead, they filter participants through KYC (Know Your Customer), credit scoring, or social influence, and distribute quotas to thousands of participants in the form of small allocations rather than large amounts.

For example, on the Buidlpad platform, I committed to invest $5,000 in Falcon Finance, but ultimately received only $270 in allocation, with the remaining funds refunded due to oversubscription. The situation with Sahara AI is similar; I committed $5,000 and received only $600 in allocation.

Oversubscription will not lower the price; it will only reduce individual quotas, maintaining a high FDV while achieving broader token distribution.

Regulation has also kept pace. Today, frameworks like the EU's MiCA (Regulation on Markets in Crypto-Assets) provide a clear path for compliant retail investors to participate, while issuing platforms have simplified KYC, geofencing, and eligibility checks into simple configuration switches.

On the liquidity level, some platforms go a step further by directly coding after-sales policies into smart contracts, automatically injecting funds into liquidity pools, or stabilizing early trading prices through a mechanism of buying below a certain price/selling above a certain price range.

In 2025, ICOs accounted for about one-fifth of all token sale trading volume, whereas two years ago this proportion was negligible.

The revival of this ICO is not driven by a single platform, but rather stems from a new generation of issuance systems, each addressing different pain points:

Echo's Sonar tool supports self-hosting and cross-chain issuance with switchable compliance modes.

Legion collaborates with Kraken Launch to integrate a reputation-based quota mechanism into the exchange process.

MetaDAO has built-in treasury control and liquidity range features during the launch phase.

Buidlpad focuses on KYC access, community-first distribution model, and provides a structured refund mechanism.

These platforms are working together to transform ICOs from a chaotic financing tool into a well-designed market structure, with planned participation methods, pricing, and liquidity, rather than being pieced together hastily.

They each tackled the pain points that plagued the market during the first round of the ICO boom, collectively building a more structured, transparent, and investment-worthy environment. Let's analyze them one by one.

Echo: Self-custody, switchable compliance, popularity soaring

Founded by Cobie, Echo has become one of the groundbreaking token launch infrastructures of 2025 with its self-custodial public sale tool Sonar. Unlike centralized Launchpads or exchange IEOs, Echo provides infrastructure rather than a trading market, allowing project teams to choose their sale format (fixed price, auction, or treasury/credit model), set KYC/qualified investor certification/regional restriction rules through Echo Passport, distribute sale links independently, and support launches on multiple chains including Solana, Base, Hyperliquid, and Cardano.

The platform is growing rapidly:

The most eye-catching case of Echo is Plasma. In July of this year, the project adopted a time-weighted vault model, selling 10% of tokens at a price of $0.05, attracting over $50 million in committed funds. Plasma's historical highest return on investment (ROI) reached 33.78 times, making it one of the best-performing ICO projects of the year. Following closely is LAB, which also achieved a return of 6.22 times upon listing.

Here is an overview of Echo's recent release projects:

These data not only reflect the potential for returns but also the variability of the returns. Although Plasma and LAB have brought high multiples of returns, other projects like Superform and Perpl have not yet been listed or announced their performance. It is important to note that Echo does not enforce an after-sales liquidity framework; the liquidity pool injection, market maker requirements, and unlocking schedule are determined by the issuer rather than being uniformly stipulated by the platform.

Investor Notice: The flexibility of Echo makes it the highest-yielding startup infrastructure in this cycle, but it also requires investors to conduct due diligence. Be sure to confirm the following three points:

Compliance switch settings (KYC / Qualified Investor Rules);

Sale format (vault, auction, or fixed price);

The issuer's liquidity plan (Echo does not standardize this requirement).

Legion and Kraken Launch: A Combination of Trust and Regulation

If Echo represents the flexibility driven by the issuer, Legion is the complete opposite; it is a structured, reputation-based public offering channel.

In September this year, Kraken Launch officially went live, with its underlying technology fully supported by Legion. This is the first time that token sales can be conducted directly within Kraken accounts, adhering to MiCA compliance requirements, and prioritizing participants based on their credit scores.

The platform is growing rapidly:

The core of Legion is the Legion scoring mechanism - a credibility index of 0-1000 points, calculated based on on-chain activities, technical contributions (such as GitHub submissions), social interactions, and endorsements from others.

The project team can reserve a certain percentage of the token allocation (usually 20%-40%) for high-scoring users, and the remaining allocation is then opened to first-come-first-served or lottery phases. This completely overturns the traditional ICO allocation model: instead of rewarding the fastest bots, it rewards developers, contributors, and influential community members.

The following is an overview of Legion's recent sales projects:

The integration with Kraken adds an extra layer of protection: exchange-level KYC/AML audits, as well as first-day liquidity. This is akin to a combination of IPO-style launches and community allocation mechanisms. Early cases like YieldBasis and Bitcoin Hyper experienced significant oversubscription during the preferential phase (targeted at high-scoring users), while low-scoring users were directed to limited allocation public sale rounds.

Of course, it is not perfect. Some early users pointed out that the Legion score may overly emphasize social influence—ranking holders of large X platform accounts may surpass actual developers, and the transparency of the scoring weight system still needs improvement. However, compared to the chaotic lottery system of the past, this is a significant improvement.

Investor Note: The Legion score is crucial. If you want to obtain quotas in high-quality project launches, you need to build on-chain records and contribution profiles as early as possible. Additionally, be sure to confirm the quota allocation ratio between the preferred round and the public sale round for each project, as different projects may adjust this rule.

MetaDAO: Mechanism First, Marketing Second

MetaDAO is doing something that other launch infrastructures have never attempted: directly encoding the after-sales market policy into the protocol itself.

Its operating mechanism is as follows: If the sale on MetaDAO is successful, all USDC raised will be deposited into a treasury managed by the market, and the token minting rights will be transferred to that treasury; the treasury will inject 20% of the USDC, along with 5 million tokens, into the liquidity pool of the Solana DEX; at the same time, the treasury is set to “buy when below the ICO price and sell when above the ICO price,” forming a soft price range around the anchored price from the first day of the sale.

The seemingly simple mechanism has completely changed the dynamics of early trading. In traditional ICOs, if there is insufficient liquidity or insiders sell off, the secondary market price can plummet; however, with MetaDAO's price range mechanism, early prices often fluctuate within a limited range — the decline is smaller, and surges are also restricted. This is a mechanism guarantee rather than a verbal commitment. If there is absolutely no market demand, the treasury funds will eventually be depleted, but it can guide market behavior on the crucial first day.

The most representative case is the Solana privacy protocol Umbra. The launch of Umbra attracted over 10,000 participants, with promised funds reportedly exceeding $150 million, and the launch page also displayed real-time large allocation data. Witnessing this transparent distribution feels like a glimpse into a more structured ICO future—transparent, on-chain, and policy-controlled.

Investor Notice: When participating in the MetaDAO sale, be sure to note the ICO price and understand the price range rules. If you buy at a price slightly above the upper limit of the range, be aware that the treasury may become your counterparty (selling tokens) during the price increase; if you buy at a price slightly below the lower limit of the range, you may be bailed out by the treasury. MetaDAO rewards investors who understand the mechanism, not speculative traders chasing hype.

Buidlpad: Embracing Compliant Retail Investors

Buidlpad focuses on a simple yet powerful function: providing a clear community round participation path for compliant retail investors. Established in 2024, the core process is divided into two phases: first, users complete KYC registration and appointment; then, during the funding window period, they submit a funding commitment. If the offering is oversubscribed, excess funds will be refunded. Some offerings also manage demand through tiered FDV, with lower FDV in the early stages and higher FDV in the later stages.

The milestone moment for Buidlpad occurred in September this year with the launch of Falcon Finance. The project aimed to raise $4 million but ultimately secured a staggering $112.8 million in committed funds, oversubscribed by an astonishing 28 times. The KYC phase was from September 16 to 19, the funding phase was on the 22nd and 23rd, and refunds were completed by the 26th. The entire process was smooth, transparent, and entirely driven by retail investors.

Simplicity is the advantage of Buidlpad. It does not engage in complicated scoring systems or set up predictive treasuries, but focuses on providing structured participation channels for communities that pass compliance reviews. However, it should be noted that liquidity still relies entirely on the issuer's planning, and cross-chain decentralized offerings can sometimes lead to dispersed post-sale trading volumes.

Investor Notice: Mark key dates. The KYC / appointment window period is a hard threshold; missing it will result in loss of quota eligibility. At the same time, carefully read the tier structure - early stages often allow entry at a lower FDV.

Cross-platform commonality and risks

Overall, these platforms exhibit several common features:

Oversubscription is common, but the enthusiasm may not last. Falcon's 28x oversubscription, Plasma's hundreds of millions in attention, and Umbra's huge demand all seem impressive on the headlines. However, without ongoing use cases, a high FDV often means that after the initial hype fades, early prices may decline.

The mechanism determines volatility. The buy and sell range of MetaDAO can indeed reduce chaos, but it also limits the profit ceiling near the sell range; Echo and Buidlpad rely entirely on the self-discipline of the issuer; Legion relies on the liquidity depth provided by the exchange listing.

The credit system changes the quota logic. With Legion, early scoring could mean a significant difference between obtaining a considerable quota and competing in a restricted public sale pool.

Compliance screening is an advantage rather than a drawback. KYC window periods, accredited investor switches, and premium scoring filters, while reducing chaos, also exacerbate the stratification of participation.

However, beneath these appearances, risks still exist: the rating system may be manipulated, the treasury may be mismanaged, large holders can still dominate allocations through multiple wallets, and regulatory enforcement may lag behind marketing promotions. These mechanisms are not a cure-all; they simply change the landscape of market competition.

2025 Investor Guide

To wisely respond to the new wave of ICOs, one must think from a structural perspective:

First clarify the mechanism, then restrain FOMO. Is it a fixed price or an auction? Is there a preferred phase or is it purely first come, first served? Is there a treasury price range or is it completely laissez-faire?

Mark the qualification window period. KYC / appointment deadline, qualified investor requirements, regional restrictions – miss one date, and you might miss the entire quota.

Understanding the liquidity plan. Is it the coded liquidity range of MetaDAO? The exchange listing on Kraken? Or is it the issuer's autonomous planning on Sonar? Liquidity determines early price trends.

Targeted layout. To participate in MetaDAO, one must understand the price range; to join Legion, early accumulation of scores is necessary; to get involved in Buidlpad, one should aim for the early stages.

Properly control your position. Over-subscribed popular projects do not necessarily indicate strong performance in the secondary market. Treat these investments as structured bets, rather than guaranteed opportunities to make a profit.

Author's reflection

The return of ICOs in 2025 is not about nostalgia, but about new infrastructure, new rules, and a more disciplined market. Platforms like Echo, Legion, MetaDAO, and Buidlpad each address some of the defects in the 2017 ICO model: some focus on compliance, some optimize quotas, and some improve liquidity policies. Together, they are making public token sales less about speculative frenzy and closer to a structured capital formation process.

For investors, this means that the advantage is no longer just entering the market early, but understanding the mechanisms. Because in 2025, ICOs are not dying out, but are maturing.