The right crypto market maker is judged on seven things: real venue and chain coverage, transparent reporting, compliant volume, fair and clear pricing, quoting uptime, launch and TGE support, and a verifiable track record. Everything else is marketing. Use the checklist below to compare any provider on the same terms, and bring the questions at the end to your first call.
The 7-point checklist
- Venue & chain coverage — Start with where they actually run, not where they claim they can. Ask for the specific centralized exchanges, decentralized exchanges, and chains they are actively quoting on today, and match that against your listing plan. A provider strong on Solana AMMs may have little depth on EVM order books or on TON, and vice versa. If your token will live across CEXs and multiple chains, you need a maker who is already live on those exact venues, with the integrations, wallets, and inventory in place before you list.
- Transparent reporting — You should never have to guess what is happening in your book. A serious market maker delivers regular reports covering spread, volume broken down by venue, and depth over time, and gives you a way to see the live state of quoting in between. Transparency is not a courtesy; it is how you verify you are getting what you pay for. If reporting is vague, infrequent, or only arrives when you ask, assume the underlying activity is just as unclear.
- Compliant volume — There is a real difference between genuine depth and manufactured numbers. Ask exactly how a provider builds volume and how they keep it organic and calibrated to your token's natural activity. Fabricated volume gets flagged by exchanges and analytics platforms, and the penalties fall on your project, not the maker. Before you sign, read wash trading vs. legitimate volume so you can tell the two apart and ask the right follow-up questions.
- Fair, clear pricing — You should be able to explain the pricing model back to someone else after one conversation. Whether it is a retainer, a loan-and-call-option structure, or a performance arrangement, the terms should be written plainly with no hidden fees, no surprise spreads captured as profit, and no ambiguity about who owns the inventory. Our breakdown of market maker cost walks through the common models and what each one really costs you.
- Uptime & reliability — Liquidity only helps if it is there when the market moves. Ask about quoting uptime, latency, and the risk controls that govern how the system behaves during sharp volatility. A well-run maker keeps quoting through turbulence within defined risk limits rather than pulling the book the moment conditions get difficult, and can tell you exactly what happens to your spreads and depth when volume spikes. Get specifics, not reassurances.
- Launch / TGE support — A token generation event is the hardest moment to get liquidity right, and it is where inexperienced providers fall apart. The right partner supports you before the event, helping size initial depth and coordinate across venues, and stays engaged through launch day when order flow is at its most chaotic. Walk through your timeline against our token launch checklist and confirm the maker can meet every milestone, not just show up after you go live.
- Track record & references — Longevity is the hardest thing to fake. Ask how long the firm has operated, which projects they have supported, and whether they can connect you with clients they have worked with for more than a year. Long relationships signal that projects kept renewing because the results held up. Short, churning engagements or an unwillingness to provide references are worth taking seriously.
Questions to ask on the first call
- Which exact CEXs, DEXs, and chains are you actively quoting on right now, and which of mine would need new integration?
- How often will I receive reports, and what will they show me about spread, volume by venue, and depth?
- How do you build volume, and how do you keep it from being flagged as wash trading?
- What is your full pricing model in writing, and who owns the token inventory during and after the engagement?
- What is your quoting uptime, and what happens to my book during a sharp move in either direction?
- Can you support me before and through my TGE, and what do you need from me to prepare?
- Can you share references from clients you have worked with for more than a year?
- What are the exact term, exit conditions, and any exclusivity or lock-up clauses in the agreement?
