Just 1 of 150 Crypto Protocols Discloses Market-Maker Terms, Study Reveals
Timothy Morano Apr 16, 2026 10:35
Novora research exposes massive transparency gap as only Meteora publicly shares market-making arrangements despite 91% of protocols generating revenue.
Out of more than 150 major crypto protocols examined, exactly one has publicly disclosed its market-making arrangements. That's the stark finding from a Novora study released April 16, highlighting what the research firm calls "the single most consequential transparency gap in the industry."
The lone exception? Meteora, a decentralized liquidity platform that detailed its market-maker terms in its 2025 Annual Token Holder Report.
The Numbers Paint a Troubling Picture
Novora's research covered protocols ranging from $40 million to $45 billion in fully diluted valuation across DEXs, lending platforms, perpetual futures, layer-1 and layer-2 networks, bridges, and centralized exchange tokens. The advisory firm used a binary transparency framework, cross-referencing public data from Artemis, Token Terminal, Dune, DefiLlama, and Blockworks Research.
Here's what makes the finding particularly absurd: 91% of these protocols generate trackable on-chain revenue. The data exists. Third-party analytics coverage exceeds 85% across major platforms. Yet only 18% publish quarterly updates, and a mere 8% issue token holder reports.
"In traditional markets, these material agreements are routinely disclosed," Novora founder Connor King wrote on X. "In crypto, every market participant operates without this information."
Why Market-Maker Secrecy Matters
This isn't just an academic concern about best practices. Opaque market-maker deals have repeatedly burned projects and investors alike.
The most common arrangement, the "loan option model," works like this: projects lend tokens to market makers who provide liquidity and trading activity, often tied to exchange listing agreements. The problem? Market makers can profit by dumping borrowed tokens, crushing prices while the project watches its liquidity evaporate.
The SEC has already charged crypto market makers with price manipulation. And just last month, Binance began mandating that token issuers disclose market-maker information, a sign that even centralized exchanges recognize the status quo is untenable.
Sector Disparities Emerge
Not all protocol categories perform equally poorly. Perpetual futures platforms and DEXs tend to lead on disclosure and value accrual mechanisms. Layer-1 networks and infrastructure projects lag behind, despite commanding larger market caps—an irony given their positioning as foundational blockchain infrastructure.
The Token Transparency Framework, launched in June 2025 to standardize disclosures, has seen sluggish adoption nearly a year later.
What Happens Next
For institutional capital sitting on the sidelines, this transparency gap represents a concrete barrier to entry. Fund managers accustomed to traditional markets won't allocate to assets where counterparty arrangements remain hidden.
Binance's March disclosure mandate signals exchanges may force the issue where voluntary compliance has failed. Whether other major venues follow—and whether protocols actually comply with substance rather than boilerplate—will determine if 2026 becomes the year crypto finally grows up on transparency.
Until then, investors are flying blind on one of the most fundamental aspects of token market structure.
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