Binance’s listing of lowercase “Neiro” soared 754%, and the original NEIRO community questioned Binance’s currency listing strategy

Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, recently announced the listing of three meme tokens—$Neiro, $BABYDOGE, and $TURBO—on 16 September at 18:00 Beijing time. Despite a broader downturn in the cryptocurrency market, these tokens swiftly gained attention on CoinGecko’s trending charts.

As of the time of writing:

• Neiro: $0.0003888 (up 754% in 24 hours)
• BABYDOGE: $0.000000001912 (up 75% in 24 hours)
• TURBO: $0.004675 (up 18% in 24 hours)

source：CoinGecko

Confusion over Neiro tokens

A point of contention lies with the lowercase "Neiro" token, which calls itself the “First Neiro on Ethereum.” Investors are urged to exercise caution, as Binance had already listed a perpetual contract for a token named "NEIRO" (uppercase) earlier this month.

related reading：DOGE coin owner launches new dogecoin Neiro, which surges by more than 67,600%, far more popular than Trump’s Bitcoin conference speech

Binance's decision to simultaneously offer both the lowercase Neiro on spot and contract markets has caused confusion. The previously popular uppercase NEIRO token has since plummeted, dropping 43% in value over the last 24 hours to $0.07808, with its market capitalisation shrinking to $78.49 million. This unexpected move has drawn criticism from the community, many accusing Binance of misleading investors.

NEIRO market value fell

Criticism from the community

The release of lowercase Neiro has sparked discontent among those who had invested in uppercase NEIRO, with notable influencers voicing their displeasure. One prominent Twitter personality, @cozypront, who has 155,000 followers, expressed frustration, stating:

"What the hell! Binance has become a joke. How can you list a $15 million market cap Neiro when you've already launched a $130 million token with a contract?"

Similarly, Leonidas, founder of the $DOG Bitcoin Runes project, condemned Binance’s listing of a low-market-cap meme token like Neiro as a disservice to more established meme tokens with strong community support.

Binance’s response to the controversy

Binance’s He Yi responded to the criticism via Telegram, clarifying that the exchange did not intend to steer the direction of meme tokens. She explained the reasoning behind the listing of Neiro, attributing it to its lower market cap and decentralised token distribution:

"Binance isn’t trying to dictate the meme space. The market’s focus is on meme tokens because there aren’t any other major trends at the moment. We listed NEIRO earlier due to hype, but the community feedback indicated that it was becoming too centralised. So we took time to find alternatives like Neiro, with more decentralised ownership and lower market capitalisation."

She further emphasised that Binance strives to offer a diverse range of tokens, urging users to conduct thorough research before making investment decisions.

A questionable strategy?

Binance's approach to these listings has raised eyebrows, particularly with the timing and reasoning behind the introduction of the lowercase Neiro token. The market seems sceptical of the platform’s decision, which may undermine investor confidence in its listing practices.