Why list on a DEX

The CEX vs DEX debate is as old as the early DEXs (if not earlier) but usually focuses on the trader/investor’s perspective. Let’s now look at this decision from the viewpoint of a crypto project. Certainly, listing on one or another has its set of benefits and problems. But for true DeFi pioneers, the answer is obvious.

Reach

While a listing on the centralized Coinbase or Binance is highly converted, they tend to only take established projects. For wide early adoption among people actually passionate about the DeFi space, DEXs are the way to go. Just think about how excited Crypto Twitter gets when a promising project gets its first Uniswap pair.

Accessibility/Anonymity

A known major drawback of CEXs is the need to comply with local laws and regulations (even Binance gave in and funneled its US customers into Binance US). This inevitably requires user KYC verification to fully use the exchange and thus can exclude a number of nationals of those countries where regulations are not crypto-friendly. If you want to open access to your native token to all the people, a DEX is a much better choice for your listing. Same if you value privacy and want to resist enforcing KYC regulations.

Not your key, not your money

This famous phrase is the battle cry of many DEX fans. After all, having an account on a CEX actually means them holding custody of your coins in their wallet that they let you access… for now. In contrast, you can trade via many DEXs without ever even going to their site, from the security of your own wallet (including hardware wallets like the Ledger).

Decentralization

At the end of the day, we are huge fans of decentralization, which is one of the guiding principles behind the rise of cryptocurrency in the first place. Why hand over the control of your community’s private keys and make other compromises with a central authority? Aren’t we in this to take back the power? In DEXs, the community controls the pools for various token pairs. It’s up to the community to keep liquidity going. And that’s quite powerful.

111PG is part of the movement to make decentralized tools better. Having helped many projects list on the obviously decentralized AMMs on several blockchains, we see DEXs as the clear winner and the one true way for DeFi. When a project lists for the first time, you send out a signal to your community and to the world — what kind of a project are you, one bringing change to the old order or conforming to it?

We definitively recommend casting the CEXs aside and keeping developing DEXs to be everything DeFi needs today and beyond. Just watch and you’ll see how DEXs are now showing themselves as key driver of project growth in the space and will continue to do so dramatically in the next 2–3 years.

And if you need a consultation about listing on a DEX — well, just write to us. We specialize in protecting project listings but can also easily help and suggest how to list in a way that makes the most sense for your project and community. After all, our team has conducted over 50 such consultations already. So we are the experts in DEX listings and will be happy to share our expertise. Don’t be shy.