Original | Odaily Planet Daily ( @OdailyChina )
Author | Fu Howe ( @vincent 31515173 )
Today, the Binance Chinese community officially introduced a new feature of the Binance Web3 wallet - Binance Alpha at the Space event.
In this event, Binance co-founder He Yi and Binance Wallet Business Director Winson appeared together to answer questions about new features for users and conduct in-depth analysis of the latest developments in the industry. This Space invited a number of Web3 Chinese media and well-known KOLs to participate in this discussion and asked He Yi and Winson questions about hot topics such as Binances coin listing policy.
At the event, He Yi shared his views on the current industry situation, responded to recent controversial issues such as Binance listing, and elaborated on the future development plan of Binance Alpha zone.
The following is a transcript of Space, compiled and edited by Odaily Planet Daily.
Q: Binance has faced many controversies in the past year. How do you view this phenomenon? Why did Binance launch Binance Alpha? Can you tell us the cause and effect of this matter and whether the project selection process is the same as futures and spot listing?
He Yi: Binance listings do have higher user expectations, and everyone hopes that every listed coin will rise, but the reality is that the market value of a coin rises in the short term after listing, and then falls back. This situation makes us constantly look for optimization solutions, such as suppressing the coin price through pre-market pricing, but the effect is limited.
There are also some structural problems in the entire industry:
The project has a short coin issuance cycle and lacks real users and solid business models. A lot of on-chain interaction data is artificially “laundered” and lacks value support.
The current market enthusiasm is more about distributing air. The project itself lacks labor results and profit model, and it is difficult to support long-term development.
The global regulatory environment is complex, the participation costs and risks for outstanding entrepreneurs are high, and the industry is in an awkward period.
The original intention of launching Binance Alpha is to provide users with an observation area to list popular but immature projects in the market, including hot meme coins, VC-backed projects, local chain projects, etc. Users can trade these coins through their wallets, but their entry into the observation area does not mean that they will eventually be listed on Binances spot or contract. This is a cruel reality because most meme coins will return to zero in this wave, and only a few memes can survive.
The significance of the Binance Alpha zone is to provide users with tools to screen high-win projects, while reminding everyone to participate in new projects rationally and do enough research. Ultimately, we hope to find projects that are truly socially valuable, can produce labor results and give back to coin holders. Nevertheless, whether it is the Binance Alpha zone, spot or contract listing, it is a process of continuous screening and elimination, and there is no guarantee that every coin will survive in the long run or make users money.
We understand the appeal of meme coins that are popular in the market, and will include them in the Alpha zone to provide users with opportunities to capture value at an early stage. However, the ultimate healthy development of the industry still depends on whether excellent projects can truly generate social value and realize the sharing of labor results.
Q: Regarding Binance Alpha, are there any specific project screening criteria? Are the projects listed on Binance Alpha likely to be listed on Binance Mainboard in the future? Will Binance Alpha prefer projects in the BNB ecosystem?
He Yi: The project screening of Binance Alpha does not completely depend on whether it will eventually be listed on Binance Mainboard. The screening criteria focus on the popularity and attention of the project, rather than the fact that the project will definitely be listed just because it has entered Binance Alpha. In other words, although many projects that enter Binance Alpha have high exposure and potential, not all projects will eventually be listed, which depends on more market and internal evaluation factors.
As one of the hottest public chains in the industry, BNB Chain is indeed the focus of Binances support. Since the BSC ecosystem has strong competitiveness and high attention in the market, its projects are more likely to be included in Binance Alpha. But this does not mean that Binance Alpha is limited to the BNB Chain ecosystem, other excellent projects will also be considered.
Q: Industry competitors have invested a lot of resources in the wallet business (e.g., a team size of 500-1000 people). What is the current size of the Binance wallet team? Faced with such strong competitive pressure, is Binance adopting a defensive strategy or an offensive strategy?
Winson: Currently, the Binance Wallet team has just reached 100 people, but the team is still expanding, especially for technical positions. We welcome outstanding engineers to join.
The Binance team highly respects the huge investment and achievements of competitors in the wallet field, and actively studies and learns from their excellence. However, Binance will not simply copy the other partys model, but explore a differentiated development route.
From the perspective of market demand, users do not need two identical wallet products, so blind imitation is not feasible. Binance believes that the wallet market is large enough to accommodate different differentiated products. Based on years of practice, the team has clarified its own development path and is confident in it.
Binance Wallet’s strategy is neither defensive nor purely offensive, but focuses on exploring new paths:
In response to user needs, we provide easy-to-use, comprehensive, safe and reliable wallet services to solve the on-chain operation needs of most users.
With user experience as the core, we make the user experience more enjoyable and provide security and data support.
We admit that Binance itself started late in on-chain services. We have spent a lot of time in the past year recruiting outstanding talents, rebuilding the wallet team, and reconstructing the system from the bottom up. Although it is still a clean room, the team has made clear plans for the future, with the goal of gradually improving functions based on meeting user needs.
In his summary, the CEO mentioned that although Binance started late in the on-chain field, the team has sufficient confidence and resource investment. Just like when Binance developed its contract business, it will also make great progress in the future.
Q: What is the long-term development positioning and plan of Binances new Web3 wallet? What is the difference between its positioning and Trust Wallet in the Binance ecosystem?
Winson: Binances new Web3 wallet is positioned as newbie-friendly, but it is not limited to serving new users. The team believes that if a product is very easy for new users to use, experienced users can also easily get started, although they may be a little uncomfortable. Therefore, the goal of Binance Wallet is to serve old users in the industry, while focusing on new users, and is committed to promoting the large-scale adoption of Web3, especially contributing to the popularization of mainstream user groups.
The team also plans to implement specific improvements in stages to address key user experience challenges when using wallets, ultimately eliminating all barriers so that users can use Web3 products without any barriers.
Differences from Trust Wallet:
Platform Integration:
Binance Wallet is deeply integrated with the Binance main site and belongs to the same APP, while Trust Wallet is a relatively independent product.Compliance:
Binance Wallet is designed based on KYC (Know Your Customer) requirements and meets compliance requirements, while Trust Wallet is a more independent product without deep compliance integration directly with the Binance main site.User Group:
Binance Wallet serves a relatively broad user base, including existing Binance users and new Web3 users, while Trust Wallet focuses on providing an independent wallet experience for a wider decentralized user base.
Although there is some competition between Binance Wallet and Trust Wallet at this stage, this is not a life-and-death competition within Binance, but a differentiated competition aimed at providing differentiated services to different user groups and promoting the popularization of Web3. The team said that such competition will help the development of the entire industry, and the goal of Binance Wallet is to allow more people to smoothly enter the Web3 field and simplify the user experience.
Q: Are the projects in the Alpha section launched by Binance selected by Binance itself, or through other means, such as community voting or open registration? If a project successfully graduates and is listed on the Binance main board, what aspects will be included in the main board assessment? How to avoid the problem of brushing volume and fabricating data?
He Yi: Binance Alphas project screening includes both active screening and active registration or community recommendations from outside. Binances screening does not only rely on the popularity of the industry, but also conducts detailed research and analysis, covering multiple fields, such as public chains, infrastructure, DeFi, NFT, etc. These screening contents combine on-chain data tracking and daily submission information of projects. Therefore, it is possible for a project to enter Alpha through registration and community recommendation, but whether it will be selected in the end depends on its popularity and market performance. The Alpha sector is actually a relatively broad pool.
For projects that have successfully graduated and have the opportunity to be listed on the main board, the assessment criteria will cover multiple aspects. Mainly including the quality, compliance, development potential, etc. of the project, to ensure that the project is not only popular, but also has the ability to develop in the long term. In order to avoid the problem of brushing and fabricating data, Binance will strictly review the authenticity of the project during the screening process, including the source of the data and the transaction behavior, to ensure that it meets the compliance requirements of the platform and maintains the fairness of the market. Binance is also exploring whether to launch more interesting gameplay in the Alpha section, and welcomes the community to provide innovative ideas or opinions.
It is difficult to completely avoid fake data in the industry, especially when some projects increase popularity through airdrops or fake data tools. Binance believes that the key is to identify which data is real and which is fake through continuous value judgment and industry experience.
Binance uses the Alpha section as a screening mechanism to allow projects to display and accumulate data first, and observe which projects can continue to attract users and create value, and which are just fake. This is the core purpose of Binances launch of the Alpha section, which aims to screen out projects with real potential.
Q: How to select airdrop projects in the airdrop platform section of Binance Web3 wallet? Can I get more benefits by participating in airdrops early?
He Yi: Airdrop is a tool provided by Binance to project owners and users. Its main purpose is to attract users for project owners and provide more opportunities for retail investors. Airdrop may be a goal for retail investors, but for project owners, it is more of a means to acquire users. Binance hopes to connect more high-quality projects and users through this platform, avoid fake volume, and ensure that projects can interact with real users.
In addition, Binance is also thinking about how to allow users to obtain more benefits through on-chain operations and ensure that these operations are simple and safe. In addition to airdrops, Binance also plans to cooperate with the industry through open platforms to jointly promote the development of Web3 and create more valuable scenarios and projects.
Winson: Binances airdrop platform is a sub-section of its open platform, which aims to connect Binance users and project owners. The core value of the platform is to help project owners promote their products to the right users through accurate user data. Binance does not intend to over-screen projects, but to allow any project owner to initiate airdrops by themselves in an open manner.
In the future, Binances open platform will be further expanded to allow more projects to be promoted on the platform without limiting the choice of projects. In this way, Binance aims to create a diverse platform that provides more opportunities for project owners and users.
Q: Will wallets turn to chain abstraction or intentional wallets in the future? If so, will they adopt their own technology or that of other projects?
Winson: Binance Wallet will indeed adopt technologies related to chain abstraction and intent wallets, but will not completely switch to these two methods. The goal is to lower the users usage threshold and achieve a more convenient user experience through these technologies. Binance Wallet will not simply copy existing solutions on the market in terms of technology selection, but will conduct in-depth technical research and design a suitable solution based on its own user needs. Although technology serves the product, Binance emphasizes that technology should be combined with user scenarios to ultimately bring higher value to users, rather than simply following technology trends.
Q: Will Binance adjust the screening criteria or display list based on user feedback on the displayed tokens? If the displayed tokens encounter widespread negative feedback, how will Binance respond?
He Yi: Binance will follow its own arrangement logic in the arrangement of project displays, such as considering factors such as the rise and fall of tokens and the time of listing. Users can arrange according to their own needs. Binance focuses on maintaining the transparency and flexibility of the platform and allowing users to sort by themselves.
For negative feedback in on-chain operations, Binance will remind users through notifications, especially when high-risk projects appear. Since Binance is a pure on-chain operation, it cannot close functions such as deposits or withdrawals like CEX platforms, so it mainly relies on early warning mechanisms to remind users. As for feedback channels, Binance is considering setting up a Telegram group to facilitate users to provide feedback at any time and ensure timely response to project risks.
Q: Binance Wallet is positioned as the largest airdrop platform. What is its core idea? How does Binance Wallet help newcomers lower the threshold for on-chain interaction? What are the advantages and considerations of Binance Wallet as an airdrop distribution platform?
Winson: Binance Wallets strategy is not just focused on becoming the largest airdrop platform. Although the airdrop platform is an important means of Binance Wallet, it is not the only core strategy. The goal of the platform is to build a bridge between users and project parties, capture user value through the airdrop platform, and help achieve a win-win situation for both parties. The positioning of the airdrop platform is to provide users with a convenient airdrop participation experience, rather than just being a distribution platform.
Binance Wallet has made a lot of optimizations in guiding new users to lower the threshold for on-chain interaction. The focus is on the following aspects:
Guided experience: Provide users with a nanny-level tutorial to guide them on how to complete each step.
Airdrop management: The Reward Center function helps users manage airdrop revenue, avoids manual management, and improves user experience.
User life cycle management: From project release to airdrop collection, to revenue management, we provide a one-stop solution, allowing users to do as little as possible and leave the rest to the platform.
Through these optimizations, Binance Wallet strives to simplify the user participation process and improve user experience.
From the perspective of the project side, Binance Wallet is not only an airdrop platform, but also a precision marketing platform. The project side can use Binance Wallet to ensure that the airdrop tokens are distributed to the target user group, which is also the direction of future product iterations of Binance Wallet.
Q: How does Binance Wallet define its own growth? What experiences and lessons has Binance Wallet learned in its past development?
He Yi: The growth definition of Binance Wallet is not only as an extension of a wallet platform, but also as an important entrance to the entire Web3 ecosystem. The goal of Binance Wallet is to become a simple channel for users to deposit fiat currency, register, complete KYC and operate on the chain. The core idea is to simplify the operation process and provide a smooth cross-platform experience, so that users can smoothly complete both on-chain operations and using centralized exchanges (CEX) for financial management.
Binance Wallet positions itself as the entrance to Web3, helping users understand hot topics in the cryptocurrency circle and eliminating the boundaries between blockchain and traditional finance. Whether users choose to interact on the chain or invest on CEX, Binance Wallet hopes to provide the simplest solution to enhance the user experience.
In the growth process of Binance Wallet, the biggest lessons learned are mainly concentrated in the following points:
Insufficient professional talent reserves: In the past, Binance Wallet did not have enough reserves in Web3 technology, and mainly preferred the Web2 operating mode. Although it can operate efficiently, it still has shortcomings in the in-depth understanding and application of Web3 technology. This is an important reflection point. Binance hopes to attract more professional talents to join and promote the further development of the platform.
Detours: Binance has encountered challenges in compliance and technology. For example, in the past, we experienced difficulties and setbacks in the use of Compass, compliance and license application, especially in the solution of Web3 technology, there were some mistakes. Through these experiences, Binance paid more attention to compliance and made large-scale investments and adjustments.
The process of transitioning to Web3: Binance’s gradual transition from the traditional Web2 platform to Web3 was not an easy process. Although the company’s operating model was very successful in the Web2 environment, Web3’s thinking and technical requirements are different, and Binance has certain technical shortcomings in this regard. These detours helped the team understand that in order to truly become an industry leader, they must make breakthroughs in Web3 technology and thinking.
