What is a launchpad?
- Author
- CRYPTO PORT Editorial
- Published
- Updated
- Reading time
- 5 min
In short
Launchpad is the general term for platforms that broker the sale and distribution of new tokens. They range from exchange-run programmes to permissionless ones anyone can list on, and the further toward the latter you go, the thinner the vetting. Participants' risk is not only price decline but also the operator's discretion over lock terms and whether distribution happens at all.
Key points
- A venue that brokers new token sales and distribution
- How much vetting happens depends entirely on the operator
- Entry often requires holding or locking another token
- Delays and changed terms do happen
Definition
A platform that packages the sale, allocation and distribution of newly issued tokens. Some are run centrally by exchanges; others operate permissionlessly through smart contracts.
When projects build their own sale sites, imitation sites and mis-sent funds follow. A launchpad supplies that layer as shared infrastructure, handling applications, allocation, distribution and locking in one place, which spares users from learning a new site for every sale.
Entry conditions vary by platform. A common design requires locking the platform's own token for a set period, which means taking part is itself an exposure to that token's price. The funds are also immobilised for the duration, which is worth weighing.
On permissionless launchpads, anyone can register a token and start selling. The flip side of that ease is a recurring pattern of development stopping once funds are raised, or contracts containing mechanisms that block holders from selling. Checking whether the contract has been verified is the bare minimum.
Watch out for
- · Locking a token to qualify means accepting its price risk for that period
- · Permissionless launchpads have no vetting; contracts that block selling appear regularly
- · Anyone selling a 'guaranteed allocation' is running a scam