Binance to tighten token listing process, jeopardizing profitability

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance is tightening requirements for listing new tokens on its platform.

According to a March 15 report from Bloomberg, Binance will tighten listing requirements for new tokens to enhance investor protection on its platform.

Executives involved in the Binance listing, who spoke anonymously to avoid jeopardizing business relationships, said the changes threaten their profitability and make listing new tokens prohibitively burdensome. One of them verbally complained to Binance management about the tightening of requirements. The changes began to take effect late last year, said the source, who asked not to be identified.

Now, projects seeking to list tokens on Binance must agree to a more extended cliff period—from six months to a year—during which coins cannot be sold, more must be allocated to market makers, and collateral must be paid. In some cases, the exchange requests that a more significant portion of traded tokens be assigned to market makers to ensure adequate liquidity.

“A longer vesting schedule fosters deeper project commitment, benefiting the users and the overall ecosystem.”

Binance executives

Binance employees’ concerns about loss of profits are not accidental. The company’s share in the market of centralized cryptocurrency exchanges in November 2023, against the background of the announcement of Changpeng Zhao‘s resignation from the post of CEO, briefly dropped to 32%, and at the end of 2023 decreased by 5% from 54.2% to 48.7%.

Although the exchange still leads the market by a wide margin over other trading platforms, its share of influence has declined after a series of problems in 2023. The most high-profile case was the proceedings with U.S. regulatory authorities, resulting in the exchange paying $4.3 billion for economic offenses.