Binance has moved to tighten control over its token listing process, warning projects to cut out middlemen and apply directly to the exchange. In a Wednesday announcement, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume laid out the official pathways and rules for getting tokens listed — and flagged a growing problem with third-party “listing agents” who promise listings in exchange for payment. Binance made clear that it does not authorize any intermediaries to offer listing services and urged projects to submit applications only through its official Spot Listing, Futures Listing and Alpha Featuring forms. Binance also published a partial blacklist of individuals and organizations it says are falsely marketing themselves as “Binance listing agents.” The list names seven entities and people, including an account called Central Research (which claims on X to represent an investment research organization), the crypto incubator BitABC, and an individual identified as Fiona Lee, who presents herself on a Chinese-language X account as a former A-share trader and altcoin liquidity provider. Binance emphasized the list is not exhaustive and encouraged the community to remain vigilant. To deter fraud, Binance said it will pursue strong measures — including legal action — against brokers found to be operating fraudulently. The exchange is also offering rewards of up to $5 million for verifiable information that leads to the identification of listing scammers and asked people to report suspicious activity via its whistleblower email at audit@binance.com. The move comes against the backdrop of long-standing scrutiny of Binance’s listing practices. Founded in 2017, Binance remains the largest exchange by volume, handling roughly $11 billion in daily crypto trades and listing about 440 crypto assets, according to CoinGecko. Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has previously acknowledged shortcomings in the exchange’s listing process, suggesting centralized exchanges should consider more automated approaches similar to decentralized exchanges to reduce front-running and other issues around announcement-to-list windows. Cointelegraph reached out to Binance for comment on its prior responses to fraudulent listing agents but had not received a reply at the time of publication. For projects seeking a listing, Binance reiterated: use the official submission channels and avoid any third-party offers that demand payment or guarantees. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

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