Before joining a token sale, find out what the launch platform actually does, verify the sale’s contracts and rules, and assess the project separately. A listing, audit badge, score, or KYC claim is not a guarantee of safety, value, endorsement, or legal compliance. Use the checks below to compare platforms against the same evidence, not against their marketing.
1. Identify the platform’s operating model
“Launchpad” can describe different services. The model affects what the platform’s presence says about a project—and what checks you still need to do.
| Model | What it generally means | What to verify |
|---|---|---|
| Permissionless contract interface | A project can use a platform’s interface or contracts without the platform necessarily screening or endorsing it. | Who created and controls the sale contracts, what the platform disclaims, and whether the issuer’s identity has been independently established. |
| Managed launch service | The provider says it reviews or helps administer a project or sale. | Which review steps were actually completed for this sale, what evidence supports them, and who is responsible for each step. |
| Exchange-run offering | An exchange operates a token offering under its own process and terms. | The current offering rules, eligibility requirements, and the difference between the offering and other exchange products. |
For example, Vestige describes its Algorand launchpad as permissionless and says it does not vet or endorse projects; its documentation also cautions that users cannot rely on the platform to establish a project’s identity, roadmap delivery, or token value (Vestige launchpad documentation). TrustSwap describes a managed process that includes review and KYC/AML, but those are provider claims to confirm for the specific offering (TrustSwap launchpad). Binance’s support page distinguishes Launchpad from Launchpool and direct listing, and describes Launchpad as an offering for projects before token generation; that page is dated 2021, so check the current process rather than assuming its details have not changed (Binance Support).
Questions to ask
- Who selects or screens the issuer, and what does that screening cover?
- Is participation permissionless, or subject to platform approval and eligibility rules?
- Does the platform clearly distinguish its role from the issuer’s, and state what it does not verify?
- Can you find sale-specific documentation rather than only general descriptions of the platform?
2. Verify the sale contracts and their controls
Start from the project’s official sale page, reached through a trusted channel. Match every listed contract address to the relevant chain explorer and inspect verified source code where available. A platform security page or audit does not by itself establish that the deployed sale, vesting, and claim contracts are the versions that were reviewed.
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Check who has authority
Find out whether contracts are immutable or upgradeable, and identify the addresses or roles that can pause activity, change sale parameters, finalize a sale, withdraw funds, modify a whitelist, or control claims. An authority may be held by an individual wallet, a multisignature wallet, or another contract; determine what that arrangement permits rather than treating the label as proof of safety.
Check the audit itself
- Open the auditor’s original report, not just a badge or a platform summary.
- Match the report to the exact contract addresses, code version or commit, and deployment relevant to the sale.
- Read the findings, their severity, and whether issues remain unresolved.
- Look for evidence of fixes or a follow-up review, and check whether custom sale, vesting, and claim contracts are included.
A generic token-factory audit may not cover a project’s custom sale or vesting code. An audit is evidence about the scope reviewed, not a guarantee that a contract is safe or that the sale will succeed. See ChainScore Labs’ guide to evaluating launchpad security and audits for the importance of checking scope and remediation.
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3. Trace your funds, allocation, and token claims
Read the sale rules and, where possible, confirm them against the deployed contracts and on-chain records. Do not infer protection from words such as “launch,” “escrow,” or “refund” without checking how they work for this offering.
- Contribution path: Identify where funds go, who controls them during the sale, and what happens after it ends.
- Allocation: Check how allocations are calculated, including what happens if demand exceeds the available amount.
- Failure and refunds: Find the conditions that trigger refunds, who can initiate them, the deadline, and whether participants must take action.
- Token delivery: Establish whether tokens are deposited in advance or delivered another way, which contract enforces claims, and when claims open.
- Finalization: Check what must happen for the sale to complete and whether a privileged party can change or delay that process.
There is no universal token-delivery or refund standard established by the sources cited here. Treat each sale’s written terms and contract behavior as specific to that sale (FORGE launchpad documentation; ChainScore Labs; PEAKDEFI’s due-diligence process).
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4. Examine vesting, insider allocations, and liquidity locks
Vesting and lock claims need dates, amounts, beneficiaries, and control details. Record these separately for the sale allocation, team and insiders, and initial liquidity; a lock on one does not establish a lock on the others.
- Vesting schedule: Note any cliff, how often tokens unlock, the total duration, and the beneficiaries.
- Change or cancellation rights: Check whether the schedule can be edited, paused, or cancelled, and who can do so.
- Team and insider supply: Compare their allocation and unlock dates with the public sale schedule to understand when concentrated supply may become transferable.
- Liquidity lock: Verify the amount locked, the lock contract or service, expiration date, and who can withdraw or change the arrangement.
Prefer verifiable on-chain records over a badge or an unexplained lock claim. MoonSale’s investor guide tells readers to inspect actual lock details and contract addresses, and says its score measures structural protections rather than execution or price outcomes (MoonSale investor guide). FORGE likewise describes factors such as liquidity locks in its scoring and says its score is informational, not a guarantee of token quality or safety (FORGE documentation).
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5. Assess the project and its token economics separately
A platform’s process cannot make weak project economics sound. Review the project’s documentation and look for evidence behind its claims; a checklist can organize questions, but it cannot predict returns.
- Purpose: What does the token do, and is that function described clearly enough to distinguish it from general promotional language?
- Distribution: How is supply divided among sale participants, the team, insiders, and other recipients? What are their unlock schedules?
- Price and valuation: What price is offered, what supply assumptions support the valuation, and how does fully diluted valuation compare with the circulating amount?
- Funding: How much is being raised, how will funds be used, and is the plan specific enough to assess?
- Execution: Does the roadmap match the project’s current product evidence, resources, and stated milestones?
- Dilution and demand: Can supply expand or otherwise dilute holders, and does the proposed use case give a credible reason for people to need the token?
PEAKDEFI’s due-diligence checklist covers topics including utility, distribution, pricing, vesting, valuation, dilution, funding needs, roadmap, legal issues, and audits (PEAKDEFI). Use those topics to investigate the particular project—not as a scoring formula or forecast.
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6. Check issuer identity, eligibility, and jurisdiction terms
Read the terms for the exact offering and confirm which entity is issuing the token, which entity operates the platform, and how they are related. Check participant eligibility, restricted jurisdictions, identity-verification requirements, and any responsibilities the terms place on you. A permissionless interface does not mean participation is lawful or available everywhere.
Legal treatment depends on the offering and the jurisdiction. The platform’s availability, screening, or KYC process does not by itself establish that a token is safe, endorsed, valuable, or legally compliant. For an actual offering, seek advice from a qualified professional familiar with the relevant location and transaction. The sources cited here do not determine the legal status of any particular token (Vestige; PEAKDEFI; Map Node launchpad policy).
7. Compare platforms using the same evidence
For each candidate, record what you can verify for the same sale or equivalent offering. “Not stated” is more useful than filling a gap with an assumption.
| Comparison area | Record for each platform or sale | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Operating model and screening | Who selects projects, what checks are documented, whether access is permissionless, and what the platform disclaims. | A listing may not mean endorsement or meaningful diligence. |
| Contract security and controls | Deployed addresses and verified source; audit scope, findings, and fixes; pause, upgrade, and withdrawal powers. | A badge or report is relevant only to the code and risks it actually covers. |
| Sale and claim mechanics | Allocation, oversubscription, refunds, fund custody, token delivery, claim timing, and vesting. | These rules determine what participants can receive and when. |
| Liquidity and insider incentives | Initial liquidity amount and lock, team and insider allocations, unlock schedules, and withdrawal authority. | These details help reveal supply concentration and liquidity-control risks. |
| Project economics | Token purpose, distribution, pricing and valuation, funding plan, roadmap, and product evidence. | Platform selection cannot substitute for evaluating the project. |
| Compliance and geography | Issuer and operator identities, participant eligibility, restrictions, and applicable terms. | Rules and eligibility differ by offering and location. |
| Transparency and operations | Sale-specific documentation, clear responsibility, support channels, and incident communication. | Evidence and clear recourse are more useful than reputation alone. |
8. Treat scores and badges as pointers, not decisions
Some launchpads publish scores or describe verification, monitoring, KYC/AML, or lock services. These can help you find questions to investigate, but they summarize selected inputs and are not independent proof of every relevant safeguard. FORGE describes its FARS factors and checks in its documentation; TrustSwap describes its managed review process; MoonSale describes investor scores and lock verification. In each case, verify the implementation and evidence for the particular sale rather than treating the provider’s description as independent confirmation (FORGE; TrustSwap; MoonSale).
No independently validated market-wide launchpad success or failure rate is established by the sources cited here, so a broad percentage should not be used as a shortcut for assessing a specific platform or token.
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