When Getting Listed Means Getting Dumped

Getting your token listed on a major centralized exchange is supposed to be the dream. It's validation. It's credibility. It's your project's coming-out party in front of millions of potential investors. At least, that's the story everyone tells.

The actual data from 2025 tells a different, considerably bleaker story. A comprehensive analysis of token launches across the biggest exchanges shows that the overwhelming majority didn't just stumble after listing - they fell and stayed down. We're talking about 83 percent of newly listed tokens now trading below the price they debuted at. That's not a few bad apples. That's the entire orchard.

This perception that exchange listings represent a milestone supporting sustained price appreciation continues to shape how investors behave across crypto markets. But when you actually look at what happened to tokens launched this year, the reality is sharply different from the marketing narrative.

How the Research Was Conducted

The study examined tokens launched during 2025 across the top 10 centralized exchanges by trading volume, using rankings from Cryptorank. These platforms handle the majority of global spot trading activity, making them a solid representation of how centralized exchange listings actually perform in practice.

The methodology was straightforward. Each token was evaluated using Listing Return on Investment, which is just the ratio between the current market price and the initial listing price. If that ratio is 1 or higher, the token performed positively. Below 1, it's underwater. The dataset included all qualifying launches during the period with no survivorship filtering, meaning failed projects weren't conveniently excluded to make the numbers look better.

The Results Are Consistently Bad

When you look at the absolute numbers of tokens trading above versus below their listing price for each exchange, the pattern is unmistakable. In every single case, the number of tokens underperforming significantly exceeds the winners. This isn't a close call or a mixed bag. It's a rout.

The relative performance data reinforces just how consistent this underperformance is across the industry. No platform achieved a positive performance rate above 20 percent. Think about that for a second. The best-case scenario among major exchanges is that four out of five tokens you could have bought at listing are now worth less than what you paid.

Gate recorded the highest share of tokens trading above their listing price at approximately 18 percent. MEXC and Bybit followed behind, each posting positive rates below 16 percent. At the bottom of the rankings, Binance recorded the weakest relative performance, with roughly 6 percent of tokens trading above their listing price. That means if you bought a random token at listing on Binance this year, you had a 94% chance of losing money.

What's Actually Happening Here

The findings point to something pretty clear: centralized exchange listings tend to coincide with peak liquidity rather than the beginning of sustained price discovery. Tokens often get a surge of attention and demand around the listing event, which is immediately followed by increased selling pressure as early participants cash out their gains.

Here's how the game typically works. Retail investors frequently enter positions after listing, when visibility and accessibility are at their highest. This timing perfectly aligns with increased exit activity from insiders, early investors, and market makers. You're buying at exactly the moment when the people who got in early are looking to realize gains. That dynamic creates sustained downside pressure that most tokens never recover from.

The fact that these outcomes are consistent across exchanges suggests the pattern is structural rather than driven by exchange-specific factors. It doesn't matter if you're listing on Binance or Gate or anywhere else. The same dynamic plays out because the underlying incentives are the same.

Why This Matters for Investors

These findings fundamentally challenge the assumption that centralized exchange listings represent a favorable entry point for investors. The historical performance data shows that the probability of positive returns following a listing remains low, regardless of exchange size or market prominence.

For market participants, the results highlight the importance of reassessing listing events as risk points rather than validation signals. When a token gets listed, that's not necessarily the beginning of its journey to widespread adoption. It might be the moment when early backers are finally able to find exit liquidity.

For analysts and researchers, the data underscores the need for closer scrutiny of token launch mechanics and post-listing market behavior. The industry has operated for years on the assumption that listings are bullish events. That assumption needs to be retired.

The Bottom Line

In 2025, 83 percent of tokens launched by top centralized exchanges are trading below their listing price. This outcome is consistent across platforms and independent of listing volume. Whether you're looking at the biggest exchanges or smaller ones, high-volume platforms or lower-volume alternatives, the pattern holds.

The evidence suggests that centralized exchange listings are more closely associated with value distribution than value creation. Existing holders are distributing their tokens to new buyers at what turns out to be, in most cases, an inflated price. Any investment thesis that treats listings as inherently bullish signals must be reconsidered in light of these findings.

Getting listed isn't validation. It's often just the moment when the people who believed in the project early enough to get tokens cheaply finally have enough liquidity to sell to people who are buying based on hype rather than fundamentals.