People have covered the red flags ad nauseum.  So what is the counterargument?

1.  Token Pay is on the inside and has invested heavily in Verge.  
2.  It is not unusual for parties to reach an agreement in principle and close a deal later, after parties do their due diligence/meet conditions precedent to signing.  
3.  If they plan to use the crowdfund to do marketing after the announcement, they need to convert the crowdfund to cash no?  I don't know many ad agencies that accept verge.
4.  If it is a scam, they may learn a hard lesson from Renwick Haddow, assuming it is the cops that find them first wherever they go hide.

-J