What is a security token offering (STO)? The advent of Bitcoin in 2009 made Blockchain mainstream. While cryptos and other blockchain-related financing garnered the trustworthiness of being volatile and speculative, there's a broad consensus regarding the worthiness of blockchain technology and other designs of distributed ledger technology in finance. Large institutions across banking and technology, such as for example JP Morgan, Square, and Facebook, have entered the blockchain space. Moving forward, we'll see more names as blockchain begins to play an ever-growing role in payments systems, including CBDCs and stablecoins, and the context of liquidity, via asset tokenization through security token offerings. The term 'tokens' immediately evokes thoughts concerning ICOs, a way for raising capital for crypto projects and popularized in 2017, which can be where we'll begin our journey. What is an initial coin offering (ICO)? ICO, short for initial coin offering, is similar in concept to initial public offering (IPO), as both allow startup companies and entrepreneurs to boost funds. While securities get issued in return for investment within an IPO, coins or tokens are offered to investors in ICOs. The procedure where a business ICOs is easy, but the lack of regulation within the US and abroad around ICOs has led to fraudulent crowd sales, illegal airdrops, and outright scams. The ICO craze in 2017 tarnished the reputation of blockchain and tokens for a brief period. But through these turbulent times, blockchain's utility as a transformative technology remained strong. The distributed ledger and blockchain industry kept low, looking for an improved mix of technological benefits to create new methods and value to legacy security offerings. The confluence of both of these brought together innovative tokens in the shape of a "security token."