Are you ready to embark on a journey into the adrenaline-charged world of token sales and exchange listings? Whether you’re a enthusiast eager to gain insights into the token sale process or a visionary entrepreneur with ambitions to revolutionize an industry through blockchain technology, you will find this comprehensive article an indispensable guide to the challenges of launching a token sale and securing exchange listings.blockchain In this article, I unveil the strategies, tactics, and insider secrets used to take a token through its lifecycle, from project conceptualization through to the public sale and all the way to the day a token lists on Binance.In authoring this article, I drew on my extensive hands-on experience as a token sale and exchange listing specialist working in Malta, ground zero for the great ICO boom of 2018—2019.My team and I at ICO Launch Malta prepared and conducted token sales and secured exchange listings for dozens of token projects across the globe.I divided this article into two parts to help you gain a comprehensive understanding of the entire process.Part 1: How to Launch a Wildly Successful Token Sale — Synopsis This section delves into the essential elements required to orchestrate a token sale that captivates investors and generates the necessary funds for your project.
From the initial idea to the final sale, I’ll provide insights, strategies, and best practices to enhance your chances of achieving a successful token sale.We’ll dive deep into the fundamental steps required to bring your token to life, beginning with the conceptualization process and leading to the execution of a successful token sale.Part 2: Getting Listed on Binance — Synopsis Securing a listing on , the leading global exchange, is a significant milestone for any project.We will explore the pivotal role of building a robust community and working your way up the “liquidity ladder.” Then we’ll unravel the intricacies of the listing process.
We explore the listing requirements as defined on the application form itself, as well as the unpublished internal review criteria that will make or break your chances for success.Binance Comprehending these requirements and implementing effective strategies will endow your project with the visibility, credibility, and growth potential that get your Binance listing application approved.In the context of this article, let’s assume that the new token we are discussing is called .Crown Coin operates as a utility token, facilitating the payment of gas fees for transactions conducted on the Crown blockchain.’Crown Coin’ (ticker symbol: CROWN) PART 1: HOW TO LAUNCH A WILDLY SUCCESSFUL TOKEN SALE Success in the realm of token sales has little to do with luck.
Success requires a comprehensive understanding of the industry, a solid foundation, meticulous planning, strategic execution, and the ability to adapt to the ever-changing regulatory landscape.But before moving on, let’s suppose for a moment that Crown Coin is a based on a meme known as “Kingboy.” For a comprehensive case study on launching Crown Coin as a memecoin and traveling the long road to a Binance listing in spectacular fash-ion, please see my article “ .” memecoin I AM SHIBA: My Journey Through the Deepest Recesses and High Command of a $10 Billion Decentralized Army REALITY CHECK You should conduct a reality check while your project is still in stealth mode before publishing a whitepaper or allocating any resources to development.Many issues encountered prior to a token launch stem from neglecting this step.You must answer the question: “Can my project function without this token?” with a resounding “No, it cannot function without a token!” This determination arises from an in-depth examination of the token usage relationships ( ) established through your token sale.Your token must possess utility that propels your project towards a future where you achieve your goals.tokenomics Steps to ensuring a solid foundation for your reality check include: Seek a legal opinion on your token model and terms of sale.
Obtain a financial plan review to assess its attractiveness to target investors.Seek a third-party “sense check” to evaluate your project’s viability.For example, suppose you’re creating a project and launching a token to disrupt the airline industry and decentralize it.
In that case, you better have either a load of experience in the sector or have advisors and a board that are extremely experienced in the field.Otherwise, you are simply not credible.Validate your project’s cryptonomic and game-theoretic aspects and tokenomics to the best of your ability.Avoid misconceptions about the utility of your token within its use case.Your token’s utility should be essential to a thriving token ecosystem.Identify and document how your token contributes to achievable fundraising goals, consider the expected market penetration, and set realistic expectations.For instance, if the reasonable valuation for your token’s utilization potential in the first six quarters is $8 million, it would be unwise to anticipate or rely on raising $80 million.Assess whether the timing is opportune, recognizing that people often invest based on two emotions: greed and fear.
In a bullish market, greed tends to override fear.Assuming that launching a token sale is the most suitable path for your project or business, performing a comprehensive use case review is the next critical step.This evaluation validates the necessity of your token.Furthermore, it ensures that your token sale will provide a clear advantage to your business model, positioning your project on the optimal long-term trajectory to achieve its goals.
USE CASE REVIEW As you embark on your use case review, remember that your success hinges on differentiating yourself within your niche and the broader crypto market.By conducting a careful review and strategically positioning your project, you can set yourself apart and capture the attention and support of potential investors in a highly competitive landscape.The use case review thoroughly studies existing token platforms with which you will inevitably compete.It involves analyzing how your platform will survive post-sale and thrive in a highly competitive landscape.
Remember, you are vying for investors’ attention and financial support, not only against projects offering a similar token use case or service but against every other token sale taking place around the same time as yours.To kickstart this process, begin with an alpha test documentation focusing on tokenomics.Establishing a use case that relies on a network effect that can be easily leveraged is paramount.should be integral to the project’s functionality and scalability rather than superficially added to make it marketable.Blockchain innovation Early-stage investors are now more interested in underlying asset value appreciation and scaling rather than speculative bubbles.The token issuance industry has shifted its focus towards security, compliance, backer protections, and transparency regarding developmental progress and company health.LEGAL REVIEW Technical jargon or complex blockchain terminology does not exempt the sale from securities laws.Navigating the legal landscape of a token sale is complex and challenging, even in jurisdictions that offer some small degree of regulatory clarity.
Remember, your whitepaper, token sale website, and the team’s LinkedIn profiles serve as evidence in legal matters.Your legal team will review the following: —Assess the nature of the token (security, utility, or hybrid), determine its classification under relevant securities regulations, and comply with securities registration and exemption requirements.Classification —Determine the applicable jurisdiction(s) and review the relevant laws, regulations, and guidelines governing cryptocurrency token sales, including anti-money laundering (AML) regulations and know-your-customer (KYC) requirements, and data protection and privacy laws regarding the collection, storage, and processing of personal information of investors.Compliance —Review the proposed token issuance process, including token sale terms and conditions, your token model, whitepaper first draft, token sale agreement draft, privacy policies, and, in the case of a security token offering (STO), a first draft of your prospectus.
Issuance —Review a draft of the terms and conditions for the token sale, addressing essential aspects such as subscription and purchase terms, refund policies, dispute resolution mechanisms, the token’s regulatory classification, compliance with relevant laws, and any necessary exemptions.Terms and Conditions —Legal counsel can help create structures that minimize potential tax exposure for founders.Taxes BLOCKCHAIN Once you have determined that your token sale aligns with your business model and established that your token would be a utility token, the next step is carefully selecting the blockchain platform.
Consider popular options like Algorand, Avalanche, (BSC), Cardano, Cosmos, Ethereum, Near, Polkadot, and Solana.Binance Smart Chain Ethereum revolutionized token launches by introducing the open-source ERC-20 technical specification, also known as the Ethereum token standard.One of its key advantages is interoperability, allowing tokens built on the ERC-20 standard to interact with each other seamlessly.In addition, this standardization reduces the risk of coding errors and enhances security measures.However, while many token sales opt for the Ethereum blockchain platform, there are many cases where a purpose-built or custom blockchain platform may be more suitable.
Below is a summary of the fundamental determinants for selecting the right blockchain.—Determine the goals and objectives of your project, including its intended use case, user adoption, scalability requirements, block confirmation times, transaction speed and throughput, consensus mechanism, level of decentralization desired, regulatory compliance, and potential barriers to entry.Project Requirements —The nature of the algorithms used to verify blocks in a chain impacts performance, security, and compatibility with other platforms.
Understand the consensus mechanism employed by the blockchain (e.g., proof-of-work, proof-of-stake, delegated proof-of-stake) and its implications for security, energy efficiency, and decentralization.Consensus Mechanism —The depth and breadth of support for developers often determine a platform’s practicality for building enterprise applications.
Consider the ease of development and the availability of community support.Evaluate the availability and quality of development tools, software development kits (SDKs), application programming interfaces (APIs), and documentation the blockchain platform provides.Development Tools and Documentation —Mature platforms typically have a stronger codebase, data immutability, interoperability, vendor support, developer communities, and auditability.
Platform Maturity —Evaluate the blockchain’s community and ecosystem’s size, activity, and supportiveness.Consider factors like developer engagement, the availability of third-party tools and services, and the presence of other successful projects on the platform.
Community and Ecosystem —Examine the governance model of the blockchain, including decision-making processes and mechanisms for protocol upgrades.Assess whether the platform allows flexibility and upgrades without compromising security or causing contentious hard forks.Governance and Upgradability —Understand the legal and regulatory environment surrounding the blockchain platform and consider how it aligns with your project’s compliance requirements.Evaluate factors such as data protection laws, jurisdictional considerations, and the platform’s stance on regulatory compliance.Legal and Regulatory Considerations —Consider the cost implications of using the blockchain platform, including transaction fees, gas costs, and any associated costs for development, deployment, and maintenance.Evaluate the tokenomics of the blockchain, such as inflationary or deflationary models, , and the potential for token value appreciation.Cost and Tokenonomics token distribution mechanisms INCORPORATE The Crown Coin project must establish a legal entity by incorporating a company through which it can prepare a SAFT (Simple Agreement for Future Tokens) or prospectus and establish banking services.
Crown Coin will incorporate as Crown Coin, Ltd.in the Cayman Islands, where it will enjoy well-established and favorable legal and tax frameworks for cryptocurrency and blockchain tech companies.Several other jurisdictions were evaluated, including: Switzerland: The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) provides a supportive regulatory framework for token sales.
Liechtenstein: The Liechtenstein Blockchain Act provides clarity and legal certainty for token sales.Malta: Nasdaq.com published an I wrote for Bitcoin Magazine in which I explained how Malta grew into the global hub of token sales.At the time, I was working on ICOs in Malta ICOs and helping the Maltese government develop its “Malta, ‘The Blockchain Island'” branding campaign.article Singapore: The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) provides guidance and support on token offerings.
Estonia: Estonia provides regulatory clarity for ICOs and allows non-residents to establish and manage a business online.Gibraltar: The Gibraltar Financial Services Commission oversees compliance and has granted licenses to various blockchain projects.DISTRIBUTION MODEL Determining the suitable distribution model for your token is a complex and multifaceted process, influenced by various factors such as project type, token utility, regulatory compliance, target market, fundraising goals, and community-building objectives.While I can’t cover the entire topic in this article, I’ll highlight some key aspects to consider as you start shaping your distribution model.
The images below present a simplistic representation of a token distribution model.Real-world distribution models are more complex.
Presale A token presale is a private sale that can be a strategic step to secure early funding and establish partnerships before the public token sale.It offers several benefits, including access to essential resources, validation for your project, and the opportunity to attract investments from strategic partners, venture capitalists, and institutional investors.Presales create a sense of exclusivity and scarcity, generating early excitement and building momentum for your public token sale.It is ideal to have an oversubscribed presale, indicating high demand for your tokens.Prime your presale by approaching large investors, venture capitalists, and investor pools to secure significant allocations at a discounted rate.Aim to close your presale before it officially opens, creating a sense of urgency among potential investors.
Engender long-term commitment with presale lockups that prevent token dumping.Public Sale The primary goal of your token sale is to raise an amount of capital that aligns with the estimated costs of developing your platform.
A “fair sale” approach seeks to prevent token purchases from being dominated by whales.It ensures equal opportunities for all interested parties, regardless of their availability during the token sale launch or willingness to pay high gas fees.The public sale typically lasts around one month or until you hit your hard cap, whichever comes first.If you fall short of your hard cap, any unsold tokens are distributed to external stakeholders or retained by the project as per your whitepaper and the terms and conditions of your sale.There are various public , each with its own variations.Some common models include: token sale models —Tokens are offered on a first-come-first-serve basis, with a predetermined number of tokens available for sale and a fixed token price.Insiders may have existing allocations, as stated in the whitepaper.
Discounts may be offered to early participants, gradually increasing until all tokens are sold.Capped Fixed Token Sale —There is no maximum cap on the amount raised, allowing participants to contribute freely until the end of the sale.The token price may be fixed or determined dynamically based on demand.
Uncapped Token Sale —This is an auction-style token sale, where participants bid on tokens with a maximum cap on the total raise (capped) or without any predetermined limit (uncapped).Capped Auction and Uncapped Auction —The token sale is conducted in phases instead of one big event.This engenders trust and ensures investor protection by aligning token sales with specific funding goals tied to project milestones.Smart contracts can be coded to unlock capital only upon the successful completion of milestones, with oracles verifying the outcomes.
Phased Token Sales —Characteristics from different token sale models are combined to achieve specific objectives or desired outcomes.Hybrid model Remember that the choice of token distribution model should align with your project’s goals, regulatory requirements, and investor preferences.Thoroughly evaluate the pros and cons of each model before making a decision and seek legal advice to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
WHITEPAPER A whitepaper is built around your project vision and sets realistic goals, providing a detailed blueprint for your endeavor while effectively conveying your project’s value proposition.It is the initial resource investors explore when considering participation in a cryptocurrency fundraising event.Your whitepaper encapsulates your project’s market strategy, value proposition, roadmap, technical specifications and explanations, security protocols, tokenomics, founding team and advisors profiles, funding options, offering structure, token distribution ratios, and token lockup periods.Disclaimers and disclosures are commonly used to convey that tokens are not investments or securities but rather a means of supporting the project.
However, you must create an impression that the investment is high risk and reward.
You must do this to succeed, though it is a decidedly delicate task fraught with regulatory risk.The following are key components to consider when crafting your white paper: —Discuss the problem your project aims to solve and an outline of the token model and its utility within the ecosystem.Problem Statement —Analyze the Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, and Legal factors that may impact your project’s success.PESTLE —Gain the interest of venture capitalists and institutional backers by explaining your marketing and execution strategy for entering and capturing your target market.
Go-to-Market Strategy —Outline the timelines and milestones for your project’s development and technical implementation.Development Roadmap —Discuss your chosen blockchain and the cryptographic attributes of your token.Token Design —Provide a rationale for the chosen tokenomic design as a unique token mechanism demonstrating your value proposition.Tokenomic Model —outline the allocation and unlock structure post-raise.
Token Distributions —Discuss token pricing, token sale timeframe, minimum/target/maximum raise scenarios, and security measures to protect funds (e.g., escrow, custody, and multi-sig or MPC wallets).Token Sale —Clarify any voting, profit-sharing, or dividend rights associated with the token.Token Rights and Features —Cover past and current spending, project your budget, and address contingencies for missed targets or low fundraising outcomes.Budget and Contingencies —Provide information about your team, highlighting experience relevant to the project.Team Bios —Outline short-term, middle-term, and long-term plans, including market research, technology feasibility, versioning, and platform launch.
Roadmap Yellow Paper While the whitepaper serves as a proposal, the optional yellow paper acts as a deep dive or “part two,” delving into intricate details beyond what’s covered in a whitepaper.A yellow paper is particularly valuable for future collaborations.It serves as a resource for other , development teams, and layer-2 solutions that may want to leverage your project’s open-source technology for their applications.
blockchain companies WEBSITE Before announcing your token sale, ensure you have a professionally designed website up and running.A clean and visually appealing homepage with intuitive navigation sets the tone for your project’s credibility.Your website should cover all the essential aspects of your project, including: —Explain your token’s use case origin story and what inspired your team.Background —Define your tokenomic model and discuss your token’s features and functions.
Token Introduction —Illustrate one or more scenarios where your token is valuable within an existing blockchain ecosystem or a new one your aim to create.Use Case —Discuss your target market’s perception of the applicability of blockchain technology within it, then assess your competitors and highlight your competitive advantage.Market Analysis —Outline progress to date, work currently in process, and the critical milestones that lie ahead.Development Roadmap —Explain how the funds raised will be allocated and the purpose of the expenditures.Financial Projections Team: Introduce key team members and their relevant experience.Ensure the project team showcased on your website has strong and easily verifiable LinkedIn profiles.Establish credibility and trust in your team’s expertise and experience.
—Showcase your advisors in a way that demonstrates, without saying so explicitly, that they are not just there for marketing purposes.Highlight a diverse range of expertise that can be tapped into for emerging issues.Advisors —Specify the number of tokens to be sold, the value of each token, the duration of the offering, and the platform to be used.
Then outline the formal agreement between token buyers and your project.Token Sale Details —Provide an overview of the risks and potential rewards for investors.Risks and Rewards —Compile a list of frequently asked questions and provide detailed answers.Update the FAQs with emerging questions and add Chinese, Japanese, Korean, German, French, and Russian translations.
FAQs Below are my recommendations for using your website to demonstrate professionalism and attention to detail: —Build your token purchase portal on an ultra-secure subdomain.The user dashboard must comply with regulatory requirements for the sale of tokens.
Subdomain —Content must be well-written, easy to understand, and error-free.Copywriting —Include a professional and engaging explainer video on your homepage to concisely convey your project’s essence.Communicate your value proposition and capture visitor interest.Explainer Video —Provide a clear call-to-action on your homepage aligned with the stage of your token sale, such as an option to receive presale email updates or a direct link to a page where investors can purchase tokens during the sale.
Call-to-Action PROMOTE, PROMOTE, PROMOTE! Now it’s time to invest any presale funds into your hype machine.You need to lead the opinion, sentiment, and narrative around your project.Develop a cohesive brand identity, including a logo and artwork representing your project’s values and vision.Deploy a secure, strong spam score transactional email solution, and use it to send out your newsletter every 3-6 weeks, encouraging discussions and seeking feedback.Encourage YouTube reviews.
Go live with your marketing campaign (display, email, social, retargeting) Get press media coverage.Target website visitors with news posts covering your success.Attend events, meet more investors, and create strategic partnerships for news content.
Maintain a constant barrage of marketing activity that leverages the time-sensitive nature of a token sale.Do press releases and sponsored posts on crypto news sites with clout.Some sites promote your article on social media to widen reach and engagement.—Form informal partnerships with other teams and projects and bring in strategic partners and investors.
This is the partnership buzz we see all the time in crypto.There’s a reason for it.
Alliances —Meeting people face-to-face at industry events will open new opportunities to accelerate a launch toward success.Focus on networking with potential partners and collaborators while seeing what your competitors are doing.Moreover, use event marketing as an opportunity to keep a finger on the pulse of the crypto world and your competitors specifically.Event marketing —Hire a Community Manager responsible for advocating for you on social media platforms.Creating and maintaining active social media communities is essential to launch success.Day-to-day, Twitter alone can become a full-time job in itself.
Social media —Consider using Telegram as an announcement-only channel.Use Discord, Twitter, a contact form, and monthly AMAs for your community to reach your leadership team easily.Discord will be your most robust communication channel for the most enthusiastic segment of your community.Discord and Telegram —This is where traders, investors, and influencers scout new picks, and things go viral in the crypto world.
Reach out to a community of long-term Reddit members to improve sentiment and drive discussion around your project.Reddit — —This is old school (BitcoinTalk Forum was founded by Satoshi Nakamoto).Put up a miniature version of your site in a BitcoinTalk thread, then send well-respected forum members your white paper and pitch your project.Try to create ten or so pages of BitcoinTalk forum threads about your project.
Also, consider opening a thread tagged [ANN] on the BitcoinTalk Forum for token sale announcements.
BitcoinTalk Forum bitcointalk.org —Reward social media activity on behalf of your token sale.Pay people for promoting your token sale on forums, social media, and blogs, and for maintaining language-specific threads and translating and localizing documents.Take a measured approach.
Investors don’t want to see a lot of spammy promotional articles.They become distrustful if you push your bounty program too hard.Bounty program —Google has, by and large, banned crypto advertising.
You can get around it with a manual appeal, but it’s a bit slow.Generally, if your advertisement does not mention the token sale, it does not violate securities laws.This reduces efficiency because it’s structured as an informative ad.Instead, you promote the press you get.If your project was featured in a Forbes story that informs and creates trust (no “Soon moon then Lambo” content, of course), that’s what you will feature in the Google ad.
Google Transparency Marketing Once lost, regaining positive project sentiment becomes immensely challenging.When modifying your roadmap, clearly communicate your project’s motives to prevent negative labeling within the .Acknowledge the legal complexity and expense of a regulatorily compliant token sale and inform your community about your steps to meet these challenges.crypto community Promote the fact that your project is transparent.Document meetings with regulators and share insights through your blog, press releases, and social media channels.
Talk about the project’s commitment to transparency via articles, interviews, AMAs, and public appearances, and then ‘talk about you talking about it’ when communicating directly with your community through your Discord, newsletter updates, and Twitter.Focus on branding your in-house team and their expertise rather than showcasing advisors.Highlight past accomplishments and current specializations.Encourage founders and key employees to be visible and open on social media platforms, interacting with the community and raising their visibility in the crypto community.Discuss milestones reached (number of GitHub commits, test-netting data, token launch platform tasks completed, regulatory hurdles crossed) and the roadmap ahead.
No matter how much you discourage them, speculators and fast-profit seekers will join your community.You are likely to get many questions about the predicted valuation of your token and the exchanges on which it will list.Matter-of-factly answer these that in no way adds fuel to any speculative fire.State that yours is a long-term project, refer to the roadmap, highlight accomplishments, and emphasize near-term goals.Furthermore, stay calm, communicate effectively, and remain transparent whenever challenges arise.Remember, marketing hype generates initial interest, but trust-building encourages supporters to invest their time and resources in your project.CALL IN THE CODING CREW Crown Coin needs to work.
All internal operations of the token sale platform must function properly and meet compliance standards.Preparation —Install the tools and frameworks for smart contract development, such as Solidity (programming language) and Truffle (development framework).Set up a development environment Smart Contracts —Use a suitable programming language and development framework to create the smart contract code.Define the contract’s functionality, data structures, functions, and event triggers according to your project’s requirements.Write —Use the appropriate compiler for your chosen development environment to convert the smart contract code into bytecode for the chosen blockchain.Compile —Write and execute unit tests to ensure the smart contract functions as expected, identifying and fixing bugs or issues before deployment.Test —Choose how you want to deploy your contract, considering options like using a development blockchain for testing, deploying on a public testnet, or deploying on the mainnet for production use.
Select the deployment method —Determine the total supply of tokens and configure the distribution mechanism according to your plan.Token Supply and Distribution Sandbox and Security —Establish a sandbox, MVP (Minimum Viable Product), and a public code repository to encourage community engagement and testing.Sandbox —Demonstrate project proof-of-concept with testnet and beta versioning.POC —Engage GitHub contributors for code review and testing.
GitHub —Ensure the security and integrity of the smart contract code and token minting process.Minting checks —Set up a multi-signature (multi-sig) or MPC (Multi-Party Computation) wallet system to ensure the security and integrity of funds, Configure Wallets Deployment —Ensure you have enough cryptocurrency (e.g., Ether on Ethereum) to cover the gas costs for deploying your contract and minting tokens.Gas and transaction fees —Deploy the compiled smart contract to the network by executing the deployment command or script provided by your development environment, thus creating a new instance of your contract on the blockchain.Mint —Verify the contract’s deployment and view its details on the blockchain using tools like Etherscan (for Ethereum).Confirm that the contract’s address, bytecode, and other information match your expectations.Confirm —After deployment, you can interact with the deployed contract by sending transactions to its address.
Based on the contract’s design, you can call its functions, access data, perform token transfers, and trigger other events.Connect your application or user interface with the deployed contract using web3 libraries or appropriate tools.Interact —Handle any required contract upgrades or maintenance using proper procedures and evaluate the impact on existing users and data.Upgrades and maintenance Conclusion – Part 1: How To Launch A Wildly Successful Token Sale The Crown Coin token sale event marks the beginning of deploying a functional tokenomic ecosystem.As your token sale concludes, you will encounter new challenges and responsibilities.Some key considerations include: —Fulfill your commitments and inform your community about significant developments.
Avoid actions that could raise concerns about an exit scam.There is no time to “kick back and chill once money is in the bank,” even for a short while.Only move the goalposts by making significant changes or adjustments to your project after engaging deeply with your community.Deliver on promises —Conduct due diligence financial reporting and issue a token sale audit.This comprehensive review should account for the sale and participant data and provide token storage, security, and distribution updates.Financial reporting and audit —After the sale, you may need to convert a portion of reserved tokens into fiat currency through over-the-counter (OTC) trades.
This process ensures liquidity and can provide a cash reserve for future acquisitions.Convert reserved tokens —Establish mechanisms to allow seed investors and presale investors holding substantial token amounts to liquidate their profits gradually, avoiding sudden market dumps that negatively impact token price stability.All the technicals can go against your token, the bots will then start dumping your token, your token will get shorted, and then it’s a ride down to the bottom.To avoid this nightmarish scenario from coming to pass, engage with brokers who can arrange off-network sales to protect token price stability.Manage investor liquidations —Burning unsold tokens can increase the value of remaining coins and demonstrate a commitment to supply scarcity.Token burning —Temporarily freezing excess coins until a specific date can provide benefits such as a cash reserve or strategic timing for market release.
Token freezing As you wrap up post-sale tasks and duties, you are ready to embark on a journey from DEXs to CEXs, leading to the ultimate goal of listing your token on a major exchange.This path requires continuous dedication, ongoing development, and effective community engagement.By navigating these challenges with transparency and foresight, you increase your chances of achieving long-term success for your project and its token.PART 2: GET LISTED ON BINANCE Introduction “When exchange?” It’s a common refrain and a meme on crypto Telegram and Discord after a successful.Why? Because a token that’s not traded anywhere will eventually go to zero, regardless of how great the technology is.(CEXs) are the bottleneck that prevents a token from attaining its true market value through low friction price discovery.Unfortunately, most tokens never make it onto a centralized exchange.
Centralized exchanges Let’s see how Crown Coin will succeed where most tokens fail.
Work Your Way Up The Liquidity Ladder Large exchanges often exploit their position in the ecosystem with extortionist listing fees.If you’re coming off a successful launch, their reasoning is simple; “You raised millions of dollars and millions of euros; why shouldn’t you give us a few hundred thousand of them to list on our exchange?” So, what do you do? You earn listings rather than pay for them and work your way up the liquidity ladder.DEXs Your first listing will likely be on a DEX (decentralized exchange) such as Uniswap or Sushiswap.The DEX listing process involves only a few steps, little to no formalities, usually no listing fee, and instant trading access for your token once deployed.For example, you can create an ERC20 token and then pair it with ETH to produce a liquidity pool from which anyone can trade your token.
However, your DEX listing may only draw low trading volumes and may not help your case for a CEX listing.Uniswap, Sushiswap, and are non-custodial “Automated Market Maker (AMM)” protocols.There’s no traditional “order book,” procedures are permissionless and anonymous, no intermediaries are involved, and no funds are held.
Hence users do not deposit any funds to begin trading.many other DEXs All trades occur directly from each user’s wallet, and each user is their own custodian.
The only identifier required is a public wallet address.Traders pay a percentage-based fee to the pool, which is divided proportionally among the pool’s liquidity providers.Binance DEX Binance DEX runs on Binance Chain, a trading platform for BEP-2 compatible tokens that require BNB for gas fees.For existing projects, such as Crown Coin, this would necessitate a migration or a swap to the Binance Chain, in which case the Crown Coin would run on two chains, its existing chain and Binance Chain.Most projects, including Crown Coin, will not benefit from listing on Binance DEX due to the added cost and lack of viable or innovative use cases within the ecosystem.Building a token for Binance’s other blockchain, the Binance Smart Chain (BSC), and being listed on the PancakeSwap DEX, for example, will not impact Binance’s preliminary review for a direct listing in any way.
The Binance direct listings team does not care whether or not a project is built for BSC.When it comes to a direct listing, Binance wants to see a large user base, no matter the blockchain on which the token lives.CEXs Most centralized exchanges, even small ones, support the Ethereum ERC-20 and Binance BEP 20 standards, though they may not support other popular protocols and technical integrations such as Tron TRX-20.Many lack staking and margin trading.
Some CEXs fake volume with wash trading.And we won’t even get started talking about FTX.Watch out for fraud and scams on small exchanges.CoinMarketCap Exchange Score ranges from 1-10, with 10 being the highest score.Exchange Score determinants include: Web traffic Average liquidity Daily/weekly/month trading volume Proof of reserves Listing application experiences reported by the token projects themselves.
If you are already on some small exchanges, you approach the next tier from a position with some degree of strength.“Look, we’ve got a half million people holding our token, we have thirty million dollars a day in trades, and we’re in the top 100 on the exchanges that list us.So listing our token will make money for you.
We should not have to pay a listing fee to get on your exchange.” Every additional exchange on which your token lists opens a new market full of prospects who could increase your market cap and grow your brand value.Benefits of Multiple Listings —As more investors hold your token, it gets harder for a group of holders to sell and crash the price or pump the price and then dump it.Spreads allocation —Multiple listings increase access, aka “Reach.” Reach improves as investor diversity grows vis-à-vis: Increases access Trading characteristics—Hodler, Active, Algorithmic, Bot Sector—Retail & Institutional AUM—Whales, Dolphins, Minnows, Shrimps Geography—Some exchanges are big in a specific market.So, if you’re not on more than a couple of exchanges, you may be limited to a few markets and excluded from the U.S.
—Today’s big exchange may be tomorrow’s small exchange.Remember Poloniex and Bitfinex being the biggest exchanges in the world? Exchanges get hacked, go down, close down, get bought out, and fall out of favor.If one of your two exchanges goes down, you’re back on just one exchange.
Multiple listings create an option “B” for investors.
Creates an option B —Large exchanges cross-reference pricing to dampen slippage.However, this does not help you early on in your journey up the liquidity ladder.Prevents slippage If you’re just on one exchange and a presale investor drops $200,000 worth of your tokens, you’ll see a massive drop that may last and damage your token’s reputation.On the other hand, if you’re on two small exchanges and the same sale executes, the price will drop hard on one exchange, and small inexperienced traders panic sell and get rekt.At the same time, whales arbitrage between exchanges, bring the price back, and pocket a tidy profit.
So, you can see how token liquidity (trading volume and depth) strengthens confidence among the shrimp, fish, and dolphins.Binance Launchpool & Binance Launchpad Binance Launchpool allows projects to offer users opportunities to earn rewards from both staking and yield farming.Projects collaborate with Binance for the promotional value they receive when paying out rewards in the form of their own token.Binance Launchpad is an initial exchange offering (IEO) platform where Binance provides the token sale infrastructure.Crown Coin will not list on Binance Lauchpool or Binance Launchpad as these platforms do not align with the Crown Coin project’s token distribution model and roadmap.Binance CEX Binance sits at the opposite end of the spectrum from where an altcoin gets its first listing on a small centralized exchange.Binance is the world’s largest exchange in terms of trading volume and number of users.
It’s exceedingly rare for a project to go straight in and get listed on Binance.You must be well-connected, have a well-known and widely respected project, and have USD 2 million or the equivalent to throw at Binance.Binance donates listing fees to charity, but that does not help you pay the listing fee.And there may be other fees.For example, Binance may charge an upfront payment of $150,000+ to keep your token listed for the first two years.Expect that getting your token listed on Binance will be a challenging and lengthy endeavor.Your application review alone will take between one and three months, including time required for one or more “Request for Further Documentation” or “Request for Technical Modifications.” Next comes the application itself.
You provide the information via a long Google Doc, on which Binance will make a preliminary assessment.
Binance requires your project founder or CEO to fill out the listing application when applying for a direct listing.Then you download a one-way NDA, sign it, and return it to them along with an acknowledgment that, if listed, your token could be delisted with no refunds.Delistings predicate on a volume drop, misconduct, or various other events.form Provide the listing review team with project status updates via the online form provided.
Binance Listing Requirements Overview The Binance listing team will focus on the following: “Is this deserving of direct listing on Binance?” “Will listing this token bring in new traders?” “Will this provide enough trading fee revenue to cover risk exposure related to this token?” Key metrics Binance looks at are code commits, social media audience, and, above all else, the number of active addresses on the blockchain.Binance owns CoinMarketCap, so having your token listed on CMC may help your case.Binance does not respond to 98% of the applications it receives—dead silence.The 98% rejection rate is current as of 2023, as stated via Twitter by CZ himself.Getting a response in itself is cause for celebration.
A typical small exchange listing application will have around 15 questions.Binance’s direct listing application form has 70+ questions and document submissions covering items such as: Project name, tokenomic model, whitepaper, description of ICO process, and details with supporting documentation Focus of the project: cryptocurrency, dApp, stablecoin, protocol, DeFi platform, NFT Project pitch covering purpose and utility, problem(s) solved, project history and quarterly roadmap, target users, competitor details, long-term vision, and website.Project status: mainnet, MVP, testnet with tentative mainnet launch date and planned swaps to launch on mainnet, GitHub link Blockchain security audit report conducted by a known 3rd party auditor Coin ticker, token address, blockchain explorer link, number of holders, market cap, max supply, circulating supply, links to token listing on CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko Bios for the management team, technical team, marketing team, advisors, and a description of any major seed investors Community: DAU/MAU chart (Daily Active Users/Monthly Active Users), social profiles (e.g., Twitter, Telegram, Discord, Reddit, LINE, Slack, etc.), developer communities, recent activities (e.g., hackathons, meetups, bounty programs, etc.) Legal memorandum from a qualified firm.Binance will not list you if it thinks you are a legal threat to their existence.
Legal requirements are commensurate with its desire to operate in regulated territories.
Legal entity review Legal opinion of the compatibility of your token with securities laws or status as a regulated financial instrument in applicable jurisdictions and, specifically, an opinion based on local legislation in the home territory of your legal entity.Your project and its token are subject to rigorous due diligence.You must pass certain financial, technical, legal, regulatory, and brand integrity thresholds to gain a degree of trust from Binance.In addition to the well-defined requirements covered above, there are many less well-defined requirements by which Binance judges your project and its token.Binance does not publish or reveal hard requirements beyond what you can gather from the application preview above, as any requirement they publish would be reverse-engineered.In the next section, we delve into the unpublished requirements that get your listing application past Binance’s initial review and into and through the full application review.
You meet these requirements by doing months of groundwork before submitting your application.Deep Dive Prepare 1.Marketing & Hype — the self-reinforcing pattern of increasing price and adoption: Hype Cycle More people want to trade it -> More exchanges list it -> More people are exposed to it -> More people want to trade it -> More exchanges list it -> More people are exposed to it -> More people want to trade it …..Binance wants the popular kids at their party.So, treat every new exchange listing as a major news event.The more media and hype about your project, the more likely Binance will review and approve your listing application.Smaller exchanges may even approach you and ask, “Do you want to list with us?” 1 a—Thought Leadership People notoriously don’t have a well-formed opinion.
They will take on and repeat the most authoritative opinion on the topic they’ve heard.It’s normal human behavior, and the crypto space is decidedly not immune to this behavior.It often thrives on it.So, you work to lead opinion around your project and the space where it lives.Then, you start working from the smaller exchanges upwards with press releases, marketing, and influencers.Recruit your influencers who will evangelize your project.Incentivize them, treat them very nicely, and give information and access to products, but not necessarily inside information.
For example, when you send out a press release, send it to them first so they can push it out and not learn about it from the news sites.such as Crypto Banter can have hundreds of thousands of viewers and drive massive traffic.The core demographic you may need is millennials, and millennials don’t read; they watch videos.So, you can’t ignore them, as do traditional markets.YouTube personalities and organizations 1 b—Amplification You pay back your influencers with ‘Amplification.’ You promote them.Promote your evangelists via AMAs, meetups, industry event panels, blog posts, newsletter features, tweets, Reddit, Discord, Telegram, Medium, Substack, YouTube, and Linkedin.Get them interviews and speaking jobs, buy them a better webcam—be creative and do whatever you need to do to make your influencers happy.
1 c—Create Alliances We see partnership buzz all the time in crypto.There’s a reason for it.Industry connections and partnerships help.
For example, Binance may provide an accelerated application review process if your project is partnered with a market maker or other liquidity provider.Form informal partnerships with other teams and projects and treat each as a major news event, no matter how silly you may occasionally feel about doing so.When appropriate, reach out for venture partnerships, strategic investors, and cross-promotions.1 d—Work Up the Chain Start with lower-level news sites and influencers and work your way up to bigger ones.
Large outlets scan small/niche websites and their Twitter feeds for trending topics and the next story.This is much like how CNN International looks at CNN North America for national news, the national news looks at the regional news, and the regional news looks at the local news to see what is getting views and worth running.Start with small and medium-sized crypto outlets and work your way up.Your end goal is the ability to regularly push out favorable content on the largest media.2.Community Community Validation is the process by which Binance verifies the presence of a strong, growing, authentic community around your project and its token.Binance scores sentiment around your project with tools that scan Reddit and Twitter for positive words, negative words, how often it’s mentioned, and the authority of who is talking about it.
VCs use these tools as well.
Take control of the narrative and be ready to speak with some degree of authority when your project is forced into reputational damage control mode, whether deserved or not.Keeping your head above water and preserving good project sentiment is much less difficult than repairing a project drowning in waves of FUD.You can leverage and expand the community you establish during your ICO with a sustained brand-building campaign: Product placement and other brand awareness tactics Advertising PR Investor relations, including meeting ongoing token reporting requirements and other communications New investor outreach Strategic adviser review and outreach Industry partnership mapping and outreach Newsletter highlighting news and updates.Social media management Blog, external newsletter, social posts, and informative articles about post-ICO project development.AMA (ask me anything) sessions to help investors and journalists with questions and concerns.—As mentioned in Part 1 of this article, BitcoinTalk Forum is old school, but it still works and can help with listing approval.
Put up a miniature version of your site in a thread, then send well-respected forum members your white paper and project pitch.Create ten or so pages of BitcoinTalk forum threads about your project.2 a—BitcoinTalk Forum —Every project has a subreddit to foster a community that talks about the project and then uses this information to monitor public perception.Frequent posts are vital to growing a large following.As Part 1 of this article mentions, Reddit is where traders, investors, and influencers scout new picks and where things go viral.An experienced token launch marketing agency can help you reach out to long-term members with clout.
Those members are *key to improving sentiment and driving discussion around your project.
2 b—Reddit —Twitter users don’t always know what they’re doing, but it’s where you build the largest segment of your community.This is a hype-seeking audience, and there are 2 billion of them.2 c—Twitter —Spread your project around the major crypto news sites, including Bankless, The Block, Blockworks, Coin Bureau, CoinCentral, CoinDesk, Cointelegraph, Crypto Daily, DappReview, Decrypt, The Defiant, and The Merkle.This engenders community validation and legitimacy and brings traffic.2 d—Crypto PR The large news sites always look at the smaller news sites to find the next story.Like when CNN looks at the national news, the national news looks at the regional news, and the regional news looks at the local news to see what’s getting views and worth running.Start with small and mid-sized crypto outlets and work your way up.
You eventually want the ability to regularly push out favorable content on the largest media.—Mainstream media needs crypto educators and thought leaders, whether they are attached to a token project or not.Putting shared knowledge and resources at the front of all your communications and mainstream media efforts will give you a voice.2 e—Mainstream PR Editors primarily want to provide technology and investing news.
They may not be much interested in understanding your business model.Focus on what your project or company does that matters to its stakeholders, not yours.Don’t hit mainstream reporters with a lot of jargon and unhelpful details.Instead, focusing on fundamentals and things that matter to a broader audience.
These are the mainstream publications that Binance will scan for mentions of your project: Barron’s Magazine Bloomberg Business Insider CNBC CNN Money Consumer Reports The Economist Entrepreneur Fast Company Financial Times Forbes Magazine Fortune Magazine Google Finance Inc.Magazine International Business Times Investors Business Daily Kiplinger MarketWatch MIT Technology Review Money Magazine The Motley Fool MSN Money Nasdaq.com SeekingAlpha Yahoo Finance Wired Magazine WSJ 3.Holder Base The more investors that hold your tokens, the more attractive you are to Binance.The reason is simple: listing your token will attract new investors on which Binance collects trading fees.
Additionally, Binance’s brand value grows by hundreds of dollars with the creation of each new trading account.
Major exchanges will only look at your application if their blockchain analysis shows at least several hundred thousand wallets holding your token.So how do you get there? First, you incentivize investors and airdrop recipients to hold your token instead of dumping it.Second, you incentivize your investors and recipients to accumulate more of your tokens.We’re humans.We don’t do tasks unless there’s a reward.
Investors are in crypto for the money, so you offer them money, except you don’t offer them Ether or dollars.You “airdrop” them your tokens in exchange for the performance of a specific action that you want them to do.“Join our Telegram,” “Follow us on Twitter,” “Use your wallet and our token in this way,” “Get a bonus airdrop if you hold for 90 days,” etc.You grow your holder base and social media footprint in tandem—two birds with one stone.
4.Trading Volume Binance will not bother listing a token with little trading volume on which to collect trading fees.
—Build trading volume with promotions.Exchanges like trading competitions because they benefit directly from higher trading volume and a boost in rankings on CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko.These metrics also look good to current and potential investors.4 a.
Exchange Promotions —Ensure you have constant price discovery and no gaps in your trading, even just fractions or a couple of percent at any given time.That way, when someone comes in for a trade, there’s a current price at which the token is trading that can be, more or less, “trusted.” 4 b.Market Making —This is a bit more complex.It centers on creating increasingly large trades.
If your trade size average is $50 and someone throws in an order for $20,000, the price will shoot up or down.So, you build an order book around your token to mitigate volatility and slippage.
4 c.
Trading Depth —If you have seed investors or presale investors with significant holdings, at some point, they will want to liquidate and cash out some profits, if not all of them.
Create a network to arrange large sales over the counter/off-network.You want to create a mechanism whereby they don’t need to go out and sell your tokens all at once and cause massive drops in price.All the technicals will look against you, the bots will start dumping you, your token gets shorted, and then it’s a ride down to the bottom.4 d.
OTC Trades 5.Legitimacy Binance wants to see industry leaders and technologists as team members or advisors on your project and a crypto law firm on retainer.5 a.Team Most projects are over-ambitious and miss deadlines, either delivering late or not at all.
The team’s credibility is thus damaged.Before approaching a CEX for a listing, do things differently.Establish a track record of under-promising and over-delivering.Binance judges The quality of your communications during the application process severely.For example, unprofessional, poorly constructed emails or voice calls will disqualify your project from further review.
Binance researches your core team’s handling of difficult situations, past and present.Binance’s experience with your team and how it communicates are crucial to the qualification/disqualification process.Do not ask for a contact person.
Binance does not allow projects to contact the review team to avoid biased influence and bribery attempts.Trying to pressure Binance into listing your coin with community petitions on Change.org and via Twitter posts is normal business and fine by Binance.However, negative public comments about Binance’s review process will get you blacklisted.Blacklisting means disqualification from the current listing review and a ban from ever applying for a Binance listing again.
5 b.Legal & Regulatory An experienced agency can issue a legal opinion on your project, and they will probably take the call when the exchange’s legal firm needs to discuss your project.
The exchange’s firm will do what lawyers do; they’re trying to be smarter than each other, so your agency needs to be experienced in this.Otherwise, they will be torn apart.The exchange’s lawyers do this twice a day.If you have a lawyer that never worked on a token offering before, you’re not going to get anywhere.Financial transparency The window has slammed shut on token sale exit plays.
The days of founders burning up their much-needed runway funding on unnecessary conference sponsorships and lavish parties are long over.
A crypto project playing with anything less than a strong hand and a clear intention to do right by investors has no business launching a token sale.Success depends upon the careful cultivation of trust built on a foundation of transparency.The emergence of a more secure, transparent, and trustworthy token sale industry is bringing in private equity and institutional players to the benefit of everyone.Keep your community apprised of how funds are spent.
When people invest in fiat or in an enterprise — traditional early-stage private equity raise, token sale, or IPO — they entrust their capital to the company believing that it will be used to scale a product that creates monetary value.cryptocurrency Provide clear insight into your project’s health and document what you have accomplished with the funding.
Detail your treasury’s mix of Fiat, Bitcoin, and Ether, year-to-date expenditures by category, current burn rate, and next quarter’s expected burn rate.If a third-party accounting firm has not fully audited the figures, note that the figures represent your best approximation.5 c.Technical Credibility If you hire an agency, find one that knows what they’re doing, one with a good history.You need a solid partner guiding you on creating a token mechanism that isn’t simply “We make a token, we get paid, happy days,” because that doesn’t fly.You need a unique proposition.
When you’re approaching VCs and institutional investors, they need to look at your project and say to themselves, “These guys really have a smart token system.There is a good reason why they are using their native token and not Ethereum or Litecoin or whatever.” There are project advisors with established communication channels with Binance.
They know what Binance looks for when judging whether a token is worthy of being listed according to internal proprietary requirements.You’ll want to negotiate the lowest listing fee possible.Once your exchange listing goes live, you will need exchange wallet management and updates integration that ensures ongoing compliance with exchange rules.If your project passes the initial review, a review team member will contact you using this exact email address: [email protected] 🙌🎈🎊 🥳 Approved! Negotiate your listing fee Research comparable projects and their listing fees.
Prepare a comprehensive proposal emphasizing the value your project brings.
Engage in open dialogue with the listing team.Present your research on comparable fees to Binance’s listing team and explain why your project warrants a more favorable arrangement.Consider proposing alternative fee structures or modifications.Seek professional assistance if needed.
Caveats You are forbidden from disclosing listing application approval until Binance issues its official listing announcement.Your project is now a target.Scammers will contact you during and after the Binance review and listing process using spoofing and phishing email addresses and servers that seem legitimate but are not.Anyone claiming to have a “listing agreement” or “partnership” with Binance is lying.
Use Binance Verify, PGP signatures, and anti-phishing codes to authenticate all communications purporting to be from Binance.Remain vigilant in perpetuity.After listing, Binance requires an update on your project’s progress at least once per month.And work to ensure your project isn’t delisted due to a severe drop in trading volume.
Newly listed tokens jump in value as speculators buy them, then drop down when speculators sell for a quick profit.This is known as “The Binance Effect.” Binance.US Crown Coin, Ltd.will not apply for a listing on Binance.US as it offers a limited selection of trading pairs and is not be accessible in all US states.Furthermore, Binance.US faces a lawsuit from the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which could lead to the platform’s closure in the future.Conclusion You will likely get only get one shot at a Binance listing.That’s why all the work you did before is so important.Strength is in the groundwork.Do the groundwork thoroughly and honestly, hitting every point detailed in this article.Binance will welcome your listing application, review it in earnest, and, barring any unforeseen circumstances, approve your application.
Then, on a day like no other, your token will list live on Binance.I extend my congratulation in advance! — Article and Graphics by Jay Derenthal.
