Category-Specific Listings Criteria – CoinMarketCap

Types of Tags

CMC has two types of tags with the following properties:

Self-reported tag: Submitted via self-reporting dashboard (SRD).
Verified tag: Submitted with evidence via Form 7 and subject to verification. Verified assets appear in the CMC category pages.

General Principles for verified tags

The buzzword du jour may change, but the modus operandi remains the same. Whenever a trend captures the imagination of the public, well-meaning founders often search for a way to insert their project into the conversation through rebrands or pivots. Suddenly, every project becomes a [use case X] project, even when the connection is tangential at best.

Does using Amazon Web Services make a project a cloud-computing one?
Does adding a ChatGPT plugin make a project an AI one?
Should Illuvium have been classified as a Web3 game before releasing its first playable demo?
Does adding tokens to existing flash-based games transform them into Web3 games?

Ontological questions such as these reveal how classification can be as much an art as it is a science.

With this in mind, we conduct periodic audits to evaluate the composition of our verified categories, especially trending ones like AI. The objectives are twofold:

Maintain a credible list
1. 1. Given their multifarious use cases, (i) blockchains and (ii) projects that pivot to [use case X] post-launch will have to clear a higher bar that goes beyond developing [use case X] capabilities or announcing a [use case X] roadmap.
  2. For the aforementioned cases, a confluence of factors will be assessed holistically, which includes, inter alia:
    1. Initial launch positioning: Weighted heavily compared to post-launch pivots
    2. Traction: User growth, on-chain activity, and adoption specific to [use case x], and not past use cases.
Maintain a healthy signal-to-noise ratio for UX
1. Capability-wise, [blockchain X) may be well-suited to [use case x], but this would entail the inclusion of every blockchain.
2. To use gaming as an example, ETH is home to the likes of notable projects like PRIME, ILV, and MAVIA. Imagine a gaming category filled with every blockchain like ETH, SOL, BNB, and SUI. The actual gaming assets that are of interest to users will be displaced to the bottom, which detracts from the raison d'être of the category page - helping users discover [use case x] assets with ease.

Guidelines for Decentralized Finance (DeFi) verified tags

Note that these are just general guidelines and meeting them does not guarantee a listing. To manage expectations, almost any project that utilizes smart contracts to provide financial services could theoretically qualify as DeFi, hence the need to ensure a healthy signal-to-noise ratio on the DeFi page.

(1) DeFi Protocols

DeFi protocols should be decentralized, non-custodial, smart-contract enforced, on-chain traceable, permissionless, and deal with at least one of the following:

1. The swapping and/ or exchange of cryptoassets

2. The supplying of cryptoassets to a shared liquidity pool and subsequently allows for borrowing against the supplied collateral

3. The facilitation of trading in derivative financial instruments

4. The minting and burning of asset-backed tokens

5. Other financial related services that may apply

(2) DeFi Cryptoassets

DeFi cryptoassets should meet at least one of the following requirements:

1. Coin/ Token can represent a stake in the governance of the protocol

2. Coin/ Token can only be minted/ burned through the interaction with the protocol

3. Coin/ Token can reduce the frictions of interacting with the underlying protocol

4. Coin/ Token exhibits other DeFi-related traits

Guidelines for Artificial Intelligence (AI) verified tags

Note that these are just general guidelines and meeting them does not guarantee a listing. To manage expectations, we have to be mindful of the fact that 'partnering' or doing a basic integration with tools such as ChatGPT and OpenAI may not necessarily suffice because that would be tantamount to saying that infrastructure providers like exchanges, AWS, and ISPs that use OpenAI are AI companies and equally deserving of the tag/label.

AI must play a direct and instrumental role in the project's ecosystem/value chain.
The use of AI must be an integral part of the project's business model and product offering.
Examples include, inter alia, the:

Guidelines for Real-World Assets (RWA) verified tags

Note that these are just general guidelines and meeting them does not guarantee a listing. To manage expectations, we have to be mindful of the fact that 'partnering' or doing a basic integration with vendors such as ONDO may not necessarily suffice because that would be tantamount to saying that infrastructure providers like exchanges, AWS, and ISPs that power RWA-services are RWA companies and equally deserving of the tag/label.

RWA must play a direct and instrumental role in the project's ecosystem/value chain.
- Able to provide audits or attestation of the underlying assets that are being tokenized.
The use of RWA must be an integral part of the project's business model and product offering.
Examples include, inter alia, the:
- Creation of RWA-enabled products/services
- Delivery of RWA-enabled products/services
- Direct ownership of relationships with end-users of RWA products/services

Guidelines for Non-Fungible Token (NFTs) verified tags

Note that these are just general guidelines and meeting them does not guarantee a listing. To manage expectations, we have to be mindful of the fact that 'partnering' or doing a basic integration with NFT marketplaces (e.g. OpenSea, Nifty Gateway) may not necessarily suffice because that would be tantamount to saying that infrastructure providers like exchanges, AWS, and ISPs that have 'partnered' with 'NFT' projects are equally deserving of the tag/label.

Must play a direct and instrumental role in the NFT ecosystem/value chain.
The use of NFTs must be an integral part of the project's business model.
Examples include, inter alia, the:

Guidelines for Metaverse verified tags

Note that these are just general guidelines and meeting them does not guarantee a listing. To manage expectations, we have to be mindful of the fact that 'partnering' or doing a basic integration with Metavese projects may not necessarily suffice because that would be tantamount to saying that infrastructure providers like exchanges, AWS, and ISPs that have 'partnered' with 'Metaverse' projects are equally deserving of the tag/label.

Must play a direct and instrumental role in the Metaverse ecosystem/value chain.
The metaverse must be an integral part of the project's business model.
Examples include, inter alia, the:
- Creation of Metaverse(s)
- Delivery of Metaverse(s)
- Direct ownership of relationships with Metaverse inhabitants/end users
- Ownership of Metaverse IP/royalty rights
- Has live deployment within a Metaverse

Guidelines for Non-Fungible Token (NFTs) listings

We are currently pulling NFT data from partners that we have integrated with via API.

If you represent a project and would like your NFT data to be displayed, you must be integrated with one of our existing partners (e.g. Solsea, Seafloor). Feel free to apply to their respective sites. In order to view the full list of partners, click here and scroll to the bottom right of the page. There is no need to apply to CoinMarketCap.

Guidelines for TVL Data

We are currently pulling TVL data from Defi Llama's API. If you represent a project and would like TVL data to be displayed on your coin detail page, please ensure that Defi Llama's API is tracking your TVL data at the asset level and submit a request to this form.

Guidelines for Events

We are currently pulling events data from CoinMarketCal's API. If you represent a project and would like your event data to be displayed on our events page, please ensure that CoinMarketCal's API is tracking your event data.

Guidelines for Wallet listings

Kindly complete Annex I and submit it to this form so that our team can evaluate this request with a more comprehensive set of data points. Do note, however, that due to a dearth of dev resources, the turnaround time could take several months even if we decide to move forward with this.

Guidelines for Token Lists

Token lists on other websites are not managed by us. While we offer APIs to external parties (such as Uniswap) to generate CMC token lists, we do not have any influence over how they are displayed on other websites. If your asset is already appearing in our API, your best course of action would be to contact the relevant parties to check whether they are using our token list API.

Guidelines for Audit Badges

We are currently pulling audit data from partners that we have integrated with via API. Partners listed below conduct security assessments on the provided source code.

In order to view the full list of partners, click on 'Filters' and toggle 'Audited' on. If you represent a project and would like to display an audit badge on your coin detail page, you must be integrated with one of our existing audit partners (e.g. Hacken, Quantstamp, Certik) and appear in the following API endpoints:

If the cryptoasset appears in any of the aforementioned API endpoints, the audit badge will appear automatically. There is no need to apply to CMC.

For cybersecurity audit vendors that would like to apply to potentially be featured on our site, please apply here.

Guidelines for News Articles

We are currently pulling news articles data from partners that we have integrated with via API. If you represent a project and would like to modify the news articles on your coin detail page, you must be integrated with one of our existing partners (e.g. cryptopotato, cryptodaily).

Guidelines for Proof of Reserves and Liabilities (PoR & PoL)

Kindly complete Annex J and Annex K and submit them to this form so that our team can evaluate this request with a more comprehensive set of data points. Only wallets with balances over $500,000 on CMC-supported chains and CMC-listed assets will be tracked.