HK

Decrypting IEO: Exchange-driven token publishing revolution

2025-08-30

IEO (Initial Exchange Offering, First Exchange Publish) is the core mechanism for token fundraising through centralized exchanges in the cryptocurrency field. Its essence is to rely on the credit endorsement and traffic advantages of exchanges to achieve efficient docking between project parties and investors. For example, in 2019, Binance Launchpad raised $7.20 million for BitTorrent Coin through the IEO model, with a token increase of over 400% on the first day of listing, becoming an industry benchmark case. This model is being iteratively upgraded through technological innovation and regulatory adaptation in compliance platforms such as HashKey Exchange .

Technical architecture and process mechanism

The core technology of IEO relies on standardized smart contracts (such as ERC-20) and exchange fund custody mechanisms.

The IEO review of top exchanges includes three mechanisms:

  • Technical audit : CertificK and other institutions conduct formal verification of smart contracts to detect vulnerabilities such as reentry attacks and integer overflows. A certain DeFi project discovered a vulnerability in the approve function through audit, avoiding asset losses worth $2 million.
  • Compliance screening : OKLink's KYT (transaction monitoring) and KYA (address analysis) tools identify high-risk transactions in real time. HashKey Exchange intercepted 12% of abnormal transfers involving amounts exceeding $5 million through this system.
  • Market Test : The exchange simulates the price fluctuations of tokens after listing to evaluate the depth of liquidity and the risk of selling pressure. Binance has set up a phased unlocking mechanism for Axie Infinity's IEO to avoid short-term selling impact on the market.

Regulatory compliance and industry evolution

Hong Kong has passed the "Virtual Asset Service Providers Ordinance", which requires IEO project tokens to pass securities attribute evaluation. As a licensed platform, HashKey Exchange's IEO projects must meet the following requirements:

  • Verification of team background authenticity (through AI analysis of LinkedIn data and on-chain behavior)
  • The rationality of the token economic model (such as circulation not exceeding 30% of the total).
  • Investor protection mechanisms (such as smart contracts reserving 10% of tokens as risk reserves)

HashKey Exchange's cross-chain aggregator integrates liquidity pools from 11 chains. When the price fluctuation of a chain asset exceeds the threshold, the system automatically transfers liquidity to a stable chain. For example, USDT triggers cross-chain arbitrage when the price difference between the Ethereum chain and the Solana chain exceeds 0.5%, compressing unpredictable losses to within 0.2%. This technical solution has been included in the regulatory sandbox pilot by the Hong Kong Securities Supervision Commission.

In 2025, IEO will present three major trends:

  • Cross-chain interoperability : The project can start financing synchronously on multiple chains such as Ethereum and Solana, and automatically switch token attributes through dynamic NFT Technology Implementation (securities attributes for the first 6 months, and then practical attributes).
  • STO Convergence : HashKey Exchange plans to launch the STO publish platform, which supports traditional asset blockchain and is expected to be launched in Q4 2025. The platform will allow enterprises to publish hybrid tokens that combine equity stake and practical functions.
  • Decentralized governance : DAO-led self-regulatory organizations will establish stricter anti-fraud standards than governments, and automatically freeze suspicious project funds through on-chain reputation systems.

The essence of IEO is the product of technological innovation and regulatory competition. HashKey Exchange improves the compliance of token publishing to over 98% through smart contract auditing, on-chain Anti Money Laundering, and cross-chain aggregation technology, while retaining the technical advantages of blockchain and meeting the regulatory requirements of the Hong Kong Securities Supervision Commission. In the Web3.0 era, understanding the technical logic and compliance path of IEO is a key ability to participate in digital asset investment.