Aircoin (AIR)

AirToken (AIR) was an Ethereum ERC-20 utility token created by AirFox, a Boston-based startup founded in January 2016 and incubated at Harvard Innovation Lab. The project aimed to bring affordable mobile internet access to the billions of prepaid mobile users in emerging markets who could not afford data plans. The core idea was straightforward: users would download the AirFox Android browser app, opt into targeted advertising, and earn AirTokens in return. Those tokens could then be redeemed for mobile airtime across more than 500 wireless carriers, or used to access small microloans that helped underserved users in countries such as Brazil build a credit history for the first time.

The AirToken ICO ran from September 19 to October 19, 2017, and raised $15 million from more than 2,500 participants, selling approximately 1.05 billion of the 1.49 billion total token supply. The raise was notable for closing its $6.5 million pre-sale weeks ahead of schedule, and the project attracted backing from established venture capital funds, including Project 11 and Launch Capital. In November 2018, however, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Massachusetts Securities Division determined that the AirToken offering had constituted an unregistered securities sale. AirFox settled with both regulators, paid a $250,000 civil penalty, and registered AirTokens as a security under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. As part of the settlement, the smart contract was locked, preventing further on-chain transfers while an eligible-purchaser claims process ran through September 2019.

Following the settlement, AirFox pivoted its business toward mobile banking in Brazil under the banQi brand, which was later acquired by Brazilian retail group Via Varejo. In June 2021, AirFox filed an SEC 8-K disclosure formally discontinuing AirToken development, citing the absence of regulatory clarity needed to restore token functionality. The token became non-transferable, and its intended utility was never fully realized. The contract address 0x27dce1ec4d3f72c3e457cc50354f1f975ddef488 remains visible on-chain, but the project has no active team, no website, and no future development planned.