What does a market maker do for a token project?
A market maker carries out trading activity under an agreed mandate to support orderly trading on specified venues. The project should understand the scope, funding arrangements and controls before appointing one.
- Venue scope: Identify the exchanges or markets named in the proposal and confirm which are actually covered.
- Mandate: Document the permitted activity, project instructions and any restrictions.
- Operations: Establish who monitors activity, handles incidents and communicates with the project.
- Reporting: Agree what records or summaries the project receives and how often.
Market making is a trading function, not a substitute for an audience, useful product or clear token communications. It does not itself provide exchange admission, investor demand or a marketing narrative. Keep these workstreams distinct in your launch plan: token launch marketing covers communications and coordination around TGE, while exchange listings address the separate listing workstream. A partner proposal is easier to assess when it states both what the provider will do and what remains the project’s responsibility.
How should you assess a regulated market maker?
Treat the word “regulated” as a claim to verify, not as a complete description of a service. Ask which legal entity would contract with you, what activity it is authorized to perform, and how that applies to the jurisdictions and venues in your scope.
Use this review list before discussing commercial terms:
- Match the proposed contracting entity to the entity named in relevant authorization records.
- Ask which services are covered and which are outside the mandate.
- Confirm the provider’s venue coverage directly; do not infer it from general market experience.
- Request a written explanation of custody, asset access, controls and project approvals.
- Identify the named account contact and the route for operational escalation.
A provider can describe itself as professional without answering these questions. Record the answers and unresolved items in one diligence sheet so legal, finance and token teams review the same scope. If the project also needs fundraising or investor communications, coordinate those responsibilities through fundraising and investor relations; do not treat that work as part of a market-making mandate unless it is expressly documented.
What should the market-making mandate include?
A usable mandate names the parties, venues, permitted activity, project inputs and reporting process. If any of these remain vague, resolve them before the token launch calendar depends on the partner.
| Scope item | What to agree in writing |
|---|---|
| Coverage | Named venues, start conditions and any exclusions |
| Responsibilities | Provider actions, project approvals and points of contact |
| Assets and controls | How assets are provided, accessed and reconciled |
| Reporting | Format, recipient, cadence and incident notification route |
| Exit | Notice process, return or transfer of assets, and access removal |
Ask for a sample report or a clear description of its fields. It should let your team understand activity within the agreed scope without implying a particular market outcome. Keep the signed mandate, venue list and escalation contacts in the same project workspace. For projects that need an independent review of launch assumptions, tokenomics consulting can help teams examine token design separately from partner execution. Do not merge those scopes by default: the market maker follows its mandate, while the project retains responsibility for its token decisions.
How do you compare market maker partners?
Compare partners against the same written requirements, not against broad claims about experience. A short evaluation matrix helps the team identify fit, gaps and questions that need a specialist review.
- Venue fit: Does the proposal cover the venues relevant to your launch plan?
- Legal clarity: Are the contracting entity and the described activity clear?
- Operating model: Are asset access, approvals, monitoring and escalation explained?
- Reporting: Can the project team interpret the deliverables and act on exceptions?
- Coordination: Will the provider work with your listing, finance and communications contacts?
Ask each candidate to respond to the same scope document. Mark every answer as confirmed, pending or out of scope; avoid filling gaps with assumptions. Then review the short list with the people who will own the relationship after signing. AEOTech uses a kickoff checklist covering venue list, launch sequence, mandate questions, internal owners and reporting expectations. That review produces a scope map and a decision record, so the team can compare proposals on operational fit. For wider launch planning, connect this review to the token launch and growth plan rather than treating partner selection as a standalone task.
How does partner coordination fit the launch timeline?
Start partner review early enough for legal, finance and operations to resolve open questions before the launch handoff. The exact sequence follows your venue plans and internal approvals; the useful milestone is a complete, approved scope rather than an arbitrary calendar date.
- Prepare: Share the token overview, target venues, launch sequence and internal owners.
- Review: We organize diligence questions and flag unclear responsibilities or missing documents.
- Align: The project and selected provider confirm scope, asset controls, reporting and escalation.
- Hand off: We record approved contacts, venue coverage and dependencies for the launch team.
- Check in: The project reviews agreed reporting and routes open issues to the named owner.
Keep marketing activity coordinated but separate. A community plan or post-launch support can share the same calendar and escalation contacts without directing a provider’s trading decisions. Send the chosen partner’s scope and the project’s launch checklist to AEOTech; we will return a structured review and a clear list of decisions needed for handoff.
What can a market maker partner not control?
A market maker can work only within its agreed mandate, available assets and venue access. The project should evaluate the service as an operational relationship, not as control over how a token trades.
Before signing, document the following boundaries:
- The provider cannot grant a venue listing or decide a venue’s review outcome.
- The project must confirm the authority to provide assets and approve the agreed controls.
- A provider’s stated coverage is not proof that every venue or market is included.
- Trading activity does not establish independent buyer demand or determine how other participants act.
Venue access, listing decisions and order-book conditions remain outside the partner’s control, so no provider can promise a particular trading level or market outcome. We focus the review on the written mandate, verifiable coverage and clear reporting instead of forecasts. If a proposal presents a desired market result as certain, ask for the precise deliverable, the conditions attached to it and the remedy if the agreed work is not performed.
Prices
| Service | Price | Quote |
|---|---|---|
| Market Making Partners | on request |
Starting prices in USD. Custom bundles and volume discounts on request. Payment in USDT, USDC, BTC, ETH, SOL, TON or your project token.
How it works
- Share the launch briefSend the token overview, target venues, launch sequence and the people who own legal, finance and operations decisions.
- Set the evaluation criteriaWe turn your requirements into a partner review checklist and identify which claims need written confirmation.
- Review proposals and scopeCompare candidate responses against the same venue, mandate, control and reporting requirements.
- Record the decisionDocument confirmed items, open questions, project responsibilities and the selected partner’s agreed scope.
- Coordinate the handoffPrepare the contact map and launch dependencies so the internal team knows who handles each operational issue.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a market maker and a marketing agency?
A market maker performs trading activity within an agreed mandate. A marketing agency plans communications, audience work and launch coordination. The functions can share a calendar, but one does not replace the other; define each provider’s responsibilities separately.
What should we send before reviewing a market maker partner?
Prepare a token overview, target venue list, launch sequence, known asset-control requirements and named internal owners. Include any proposal or draft mandate already received. These materials let the review focus on scope gaps rather than assumptions.
How can we check whether a market maker is regulated?
Ask for the exact contracting entity, the relevant authorization details and a description of which activity that authorization covers. Then have qualified counsel assess whether the entity and scope fit your project and jurisdictions. A general claim of being regulated is not enough to establish fit.
How long does partner review take?
The review follows the availability of proposals, venue information and internal decision-makers. It can move to handoff once the contracting entity, mandate, asset controls, reporting and escalation route are documented and approved by the relevant project owners.
Can a market maker guarantee a particular trading outcome?
No. Venue access, listing decisions, available assets and other market participants are not controlled by the provider. A sound agreement defines the work, scope and reporting that can be checked; it should not present a market result as certain.
Can we appoint a partner before our TGE plan is final?
You can begin diligence while the launch plan is being developed, but confirm venue scope and responsibilities before relying on the partner for a launch handoff. Keep unresolved dates or venues marked as pending and update the written scope when the project approves them.
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