In my opinion, experience and the combined experiences of many others, there are four types of Crypto Centralized Exchanges (CEX) out there in today’s market. The ALPHA, BEST, CAUTION and DEATH. I will not be mentioning any specific scam exchanges at this time but I know many in the top two hundred. Despite the bad reputation often assigned to Decentralized Exchanges (DEX), many CEXs are actually a breeding ground for organized scam and some are flat out owned by unconscionable predators. Almost every crypto project prioritizes CEX listing because it is generally seen as the fastest way to promote or get the word out to new users. This is somewhat true, but it can also be a trap to sink, kill or ultimately eliminate a new project before it even gets a chance to breathe.
Group D = DEATH Some exchanges show false interest and then request enormous listing fees. Then they’ll ask for tens to hundreds of thousands in USDT and your project’s native tokens. They claim it will be used for promo or “trading competition” etc., but deep down they know it is to the detriment of your project or ecosystem. Their only focus is to dump and do not care about the project or its community. Their job is to sweet talk you into a one sided predatory contract, which will put money in their pockets but leave you and your community dry. These type of exchanges will list almost anything as long as you show them the money. They will use your funds for a fake pump and then dump at an all time high price. All the promo tokens are split between the exchange owners and sales team. Their users hardly get any crumbs. This is what I call Group D for DEATH. Beware of pressured listings.
GROUP C = CAUTION Free is not always free and may cost you more. Some exchanges will offer a so-called “FREE” listing with a request for your project’s native tokens, which in some cases are a large percentage of the entire supply. They will pump and dump on the community before looking for a quick excuse to delist the token unless you commit to a monthly fee to keep your token on their platform. Their user base is mostly inactive, fake and falsely hyped. So, when you see a free listing offer, do not rush into it without getting the full details. I call these exchanges Group C for CAUTION.
GROUP B = BEST There are a few genuine exchanges (big, medium and small) who sometimes list free or request a reasonable listing fee amount from the community, owner and/or team. You will be shocked to find out some top 100 exchanges have more real human users than some top 50 exchanges. These Group B exchange listings are often done after some form of due diligence. They help both old and new projects (big or small) to gain some attention, reach new audiences and grow. They sometimes go out of their way to make things work out for the best because they want crypto in general to succeed. They gracefully delist tokens when absolutely necessary, and even if they have other services with monthly fees, it is always reasonably priced with no pressure to commit. These are the exchanges I call Group B for BEST and I strongly encourage focusing on these types of exchanges. They’re more interested in bringing good projects to their users than trying to sell you access to their platform.
GROUP A = ALPHA Then you have the REAL DEAL and the select few top exchanges out there, doing their due diligence as they would with any coin or token without focusing on the partiality of friends, KOLs and bribery. Their primary focus is not about how much money you can pay them or those paid influencer’s narratives. They just want good long term projects for their platforms. There’s even a couple of “unicorns” in this category who will never ask for money prior to listing. They like continuous productive growth and community engagement, no matter how big or small. This is the rare breed I call Group A for ALPHA. They are as real as it gets but they’re also very, very few that I can count on one hand.
A lot of projects will die off the map sooner or later due to rushed bad CEX listings, and so will a lot of CEX, due to their corrupt behavior. The mindset and narratives need to change for the better. Some project owners or teams who are willing to overpay and sometimes bribe for listing, often get priority on some top platforms, regardless of what they’re listing. Some projects were even bold enough to claim on their token website that their tokens are “useless” and have “no purpose” or “goals” for it. However, their deep pockets and influence was able to get them listed on top platforms faster than normal. So, let’s cut the NONSENSE of the false narratives about prioritizing utility for listing and name the prize to play.
There are still a few reliable and strong centralized exchanges out there like Group A and B. The others, who are mostly thieves and predators, will tell you what you want to hear and claim to be “helping” new projects. Believe what they say, only if it matches what they do. Be safe out there.
Disclaimer: As always, my personal opinion should and must not be considered as financial or legal advice. It also does not represent the opinions of the SafeBLAST Community. Do your own research and stay safe out there.
