after going through this process more times than i can count, here's what i noticed exchanges look at when you apply for a listing. not what they say they look at. But what they ACTUALLY care about.
**who is your market maker**
first question. every time. before tokenomics, before the team, before anything. they want to know someone is going to maintain a healthy order book so their users can actually trade the token without getting wrecked on a $500 order.
**your community**
not about followers, but engagement. they look at telegram activity, twitter replies, whether real people are talking about the project or it's just bots and paid shills. tier 1 exchanges have seen every trick and they're good at spotting fake community.
**tokenomics**
specifically the unlock schedule. if early investors are sitting on large allocations with short cliffs, exchanges know what happens to price six months after listing. they've seen it hundreds of time, you are not gonna fuck em over lol. a messy unlock schedule is a red flag.
**volume on existing markets**
if you're already trading somewhere, they look at whether the volume is real. wash trading is obvious to anyone who knows what to look for.
**the team**
doxxed, trackable, credible. anonymous teams still get listed but the bar is higher and the scrutiny is different.
most projects spend months perfecting the pitch deck and two weeks on the actual listing prep. exchanges notice.