How crypto tokens are launched: key methods and models

The mechanics behind a token launch reveal the values of a project and set the tone for everything that follows.

Crypto tokens are not simply created. They are introduced to the market through intentional launch models that shape early price dynamics, community perception and long-term credibility. By 2025, several distinct token-launch models had become dominant, each reflecting its own philosophy around fairness, funding and decentralization.

Fair launch

The fair launch model is rooted in the original ethos of crypto. No pre-mine. No privileged investors. No private deals. Everyone enters on equal terms.

Bitcoin (BTC) is the most famous example. Later, Yearn Finance repeated this approach with YFI, which distributed its entire supply through protocol usage instead of venture capital.

In recent years, fair launch has become the foundation of many memecoin ecosystems, especially on Solana. Platforms like pump.fun and Moonshot made it possible for anyone to create a token for a few dollars. Once launched, the price follows a bonding curve that rises as demand increases. Early buyers get lower prices, later buyers pay more. When a certain market cap is reached, liquidity migrates into a real DEX pool.

This model feels fair and organic, which explains its viral success. At the same time, the reality is brutal: the vast majority of these tokens either die quickly or turn out to be scams. There is no built-in funding for development and no long-term guarantees. What it offers is raw, unfiltered market dynamics.

Stealth launch 

A stealth launch works very differently. Instead of public announcements or pre-sale rounds, the token is deployed quietly. The developer adds liquidity to a decentralized exchange and sometimes locks it or renounces ownership to build trust.

This model is popular on Solana, Base and Blast, especially for fast-moving memes and narrative tokens. The idea is to create the feeling of discovery, as if people are finding something early before mainstream attention.

In practice, stealth launches are a double-edged sword. They can create powerful organic growth if a narrative catches fire, but they are also heavily abused. Many projects disappear as quickly as they appeared, taking liquidity with them.

Presale, VC rounds and public sale

This is the traditional startup-style launch model used by most large protocols and infrastructure projects. Solana, Avalanche, Near, Aptos, Sui, StarkWare, LayerZero and many others followed this structure.

It usually begins with seed and private rounds where venture capital funds, strategic partners and early backers invest at lower valuations. Later, a portion of tokens is allocated for the public through IDOs, launchpads or exchange listings. Team and investor tokens are locked and vested over several years.

This model allows serious projects to raise significant capital for development, audits, marketing and partnerships. It gives these projects long-term staying power.

But it also comes with baggage. Retail users often associate these launches with heavy insider advantage. When large vested allocations unlock, it can lead to selling pressure, which has damaged trust in many VC-backed tokens from past cycles.

IDOs on launchpads

Initial DEX Offerings became popular during the 2021 cycle and remain in use today, though with less hype. Launchpads such as PinkSale allow projects to sell tokens directly to users before listing on decentralized exchanges. In theory, this makes the sale process more open and accessible.

In reality, competition is intense. Bots and whales often secure most allocations, and many IDO projects struggle to retain traction after launch. Still, for mid-sized teams, IDOs remain a viable method for fundraising and attracting early users.

Liquidity Bootstrapping Pools

Liquidity Bootstrapping Pools, or LBPs, were created to address a major problem in token launches: sniping by bots and early insiders. Instead of opening at a low fixed price, LBPs begin with a high valuation that gradually decreases as token weights shift. Participants enter when the price aligns with their expectations, which improves price discovery and reduces automated sniping advantages.

Balancer, Copper Launch and Fjord Foundry helped popularize this model. LBPs are now used primarily by projects that prioritize fair distribution and predictable market mechanics over viral hype.

Modern launch platforms and social token economies

From 2024 onward, launch platforms began merging token creation with social and cultural mechanics. pump.fun became the dominant engine for memecoin launches, producing millions of tokens and even helping some reach billion-dollar valuations. Similar systems emerged on Base, Blast and TON, often inspired by friend.tech, where tokens represent communities, clubs or social influence.

These platforms hide blockchain complexity. Anyone can launch a token with almost no technical knowledge. This accessibility has driven huge creativity but also extreme saturation. The market is now flooded with tokens, most of which disappear within days.

No model is perfect. Each one expresses a different vision of what a crypto project aims to be and how it chooses to engage its community.

In practice, the way a token enters the market often reveals more about its future than any whitepaper. Launch mechanics leave fingerprints. They determine who holds influence, how liquidity forms and whether a project feels fair, extractive or sustainable from day one.

Understanding these models is essential for anyone navigating today’s crypto markets, because every launch is a story about incentives, intentions and the kind of ecosystem a team wants to build.

Stay tuned for more insights from 1inch as we explore the latest trends in DeFi!