Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit states they require a deposit of 200,000-300,000 USD to ensure projects meet promotional requirements, not a listing fee as alleged.
Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit has denied allegations that they charge up to 1.4 million USD to list tokens on their platform, after a social media X influencer made controversial claims.
On April 14, the X account "silverfang88" with over 100,000 Watchers accused the exchange of demanding millions of dollars in listing fees. The user also claimed that Bybit uses key opinion leaders (KOLs) to prevent complaints from students provided with internship contracts through the platform's Campus Ambassador program.
Bybit CEO Ben Zhou immediately rejected these allegations and requested the social media user provide evidence for their statements. Zhou emphasized that the cryptocurrency space is chaotic due to rumors being posted without verified proof.
Bybit's Transparent Listing Process
In a statement to Cointelegraph, a Bybit representative clarified the requirements for listing on this cryptocurrency exchange.
According to Bybit, the exchange requires three conditions from projects: promotional budget, security deposit, and evaluation process.
"Projects need to allocate a promotional budget for user attraction activities, although legal constraints prevent exchanges from directly holding tokens," the Bybit representative shared.
Bybit said they require a deposit of 200,000 to 300,000 USD in stablecoin to ensure promotional goals are met. Penalties may be applied if targets are not achieved.
In addition to the promotional budget, the exchange's listing process includes application, internal voting, research, and a review meeting. The exchange representative shared: "Evaluation focuses on fundamental platforms and risk control, including onchain data, address authenticity, use cases, user distribution, project value, token valuation, value capture mechanism, and information about the development team."
Regarding the Campus Ambassador program allegations, the X user also claimed that Bybit provided internship contracts to students under the 2024 Campus Ambassador program and used KOLs to prevent complaints.
Zhou also responded to these allegations, again requesting evidence. "Please provide evidence if Bybit has done anything wrong," he wrote on X.
At the time of publication, the exchange had not directly responded to specific allegations related to their ambassador program.
