Binance Vs. Coinbase Listing Fee Controversy

Two of the world's biggest centralized exchanges (CEXs), Binance and Coinbase, faced backlash over allegations of millionaire fee requirements for token listing.

Binance and Coinbase, two of the largest centralized exchanges (CEXs) globally, faced backlash over allegations regarding millionaire fee requirements for token listing.

On Thursday, Moonrock Capital’s CEO, Simon Dedic, shared his concerns regarding some CEXs’ listing requirements in an X post. Dedic stated that he recently spoke to a Tier 1 project that raised nearly nine figures. The project’s team detailed that they received a listing offer from Binance after “wasting over a year of due diligence” with the exchange.

However, the crypto exchange allegedly requested 15% of the token’s supply to secure the listing. Dedic expressed his concern about “paying $50-100M just for a CEX listing,” as it would be unaffordable for most projects, and the donated token supply is “the biggest reason for bleeding charts.”

Many community members discussed whether the listing fee requirement needed to change. One user argued that if a project wanted to be distributed in a CEX, they should “have to pay for it.”

Later on, Coinbase’s co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong replied to Dedic’s X post. Armstrong stated that asset listings on Coinbase were free, which seemed to be a jab at Binance.

However, Sonic Labs’ founder, Andre Cronje, refuted Armstrong’s claim and revealed that Coinbase allegedly asked the company for a listing fee several times. Per the post, Coinbase requested up to $300 million from Sonic Labs, while Binance charged the project $0.

Moreover, Cronje stated that Cronje stated that Cronje’s experience with Binance might differ from other projects as the listing happened years ago and might have changed since then.

On Monday, Binance co-founders Changpeng Zhao and Yi He addressed the issue and denied the allegations.

Zhao thanked Sun for his support and highlighted the importance of the validation from someone who runs two competing exchanges. However, he expressed his concern about the “quote attacks” within the industry.

Zhao urged his peers to reduce these attacks and asked teams to work on their projects to secure a listing instead of focusing on the exchanges. Moreover, he highlighted that “Bitcoin never paid any listing fees.” Sun agreed with CZ, stating, “Focusing on building projects and Bitcoin is what truly matters.”

Yi He, co-founder and Chief Customer Service Officer at Binance, also addressed the issue and called the allegations FUD:

FUD will never go away, but it makes us stronger. Gossip is easy to get traffic, and business competition is always full of dark sides; When you understand the rules of how the world works, you will no longer be easily swayed by rumors, and you will have the ability to think independently.

She explained that a project won’t get listed if it doesn’t pass the screening process, and the exchange doesn’t charge a “so-called 20%” fee. Yi He also remarked that the exchange’s listing rules are “transparent and clear,” including the airdrop rules for Binance’s Launchpool. Ultimately, she urged the community to do their research when controversy sparks.