My thoughts on the elusive Matrix exchange listing…

THIS IS JUST MY OPINION NOT AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT

:: The team did review and approve this for accuracy ::

I know there has been frustration around the “exchange issue” with Matrix and why it hasn’t happened yet. Everyone has eagerly anticipated Matrix launching on a big exchange. Me, you, everyone. But let’s step back and take a look at why. The Matrix Foundation is registered in Hong Kong which allows it to operate outside of China’s strict policies, but that doesn’t mean that China doesn’t influence decision making. Around the time of the Spring Festival (Chinese New Year) China asserted deeper control on ICOs, exchanges, and cryptocurrency. New rules were put in place which focused a lot of effort on cracking down on NEW coins. While it was Matrix that indicated that ‘big exchanges were coming’ they appeared to have gotten caught in the China trap.

Huobi, which is registered outside of China, but is still a Chinese company wants to play nice with the Chinese government. Lin, the founder of Huobi, is a Chinese citizen who is not able to be an immigrant due to China’s restriction on big cryptocurrency guys, so he has to work with the Chinese government. At some point in the future, it’s possible that China will reopen trading in China under their own rules. If that were to happen it would make a lot of sense that Huobi would want to play nice now to garner favor in the future.

So how does Huobi do that? First, they want to focus on top coins — coins that have quality, high interest, and a lot of volume. Why? While China would love to control cryptocurrency because they don’t want any ‘foreign’ currency to affect the Yuan they also don’t want scams, Ponzi schemes, or ‘crap coins’ to spread especially not from Chinese companies. So it is in Huobi’s best interest to scrutinize each coin for quality. That’s where Hadax comes in. Hadax is their new decentralized exchange which allows the community to vote — this takes the full burden off of Huobi to pick the top coins. Note their comment from the rules of Hadax. “The project with the highest number of votes will have the priority to enter Huobi Pro’s review”. It doesn’t say that #1 WILL AUTOMATICALLY be put on Huobi Pro. The voting system used to avoid policy risk is only for China’s projects, which means teams based in China are going to be more scrutinized. Other big exchanges will also follow this new system.

So what role does Matrix have in this? Matrix had indicated that they would be listed. That was an unfortunate statement because they really did believe they were moving forward with that listing and then the rules changed. Of course the question will arise, but how are all these other coins being listed? Getting listed does take time. A lot of the coins you see listing today were baked in months ago prior to the rule change. Not all, but most.

All new Chinese coins are going through the same scrutiny and all new non-China coins are going through tougher rigor by the exchanges so they pick high quality high volume coins and bypass the junk. This is applicable to the US as well. If the SEC deems coins securities the exchanges will want to comply and again will want to pick quality well vetted coins. Have you seen Bittrex’s vetting of coins? They dropped many coins from their exchange.

So what did Matrix do wrong? They overpromised. That was a mistake. Learning from this it would be wise for them to stay quiet and “under promise and over deliver”. They also need to improve communication. More AMAs, official statements, and relaying what actions they’re taking to rectify these situations are in order. People say that Matrix doesn’t listen… this is totally false. Matrix is very tuned into the feedback. They listen and take a lot of this feedback to create actions from it. Unfortunately, some of the things are simply out of their control or take longer than people want. And others is simply a language or culture barrier. Things operate differently in China, but that doesn’t mean that they’re not listening. I assure you, they are.

Kicking, screaming, and yelling at the admins in Telegram will DO NOTHING. The admins are only given what they’re told and some of it is confidential. Just know — the **constructive** feedback does get back to the Matrix team. They ARE aware.

I’ve talked to a few of the VCs and there is no panic in their tone. These types of investments are LONG TERM and they view these as short term bumps that will be rectified over time. Their focus is on the tech — if there was a problem in that area then I would see genuine concern from them. The tech is the bright spot for sure. The vision, the team, and the timeline (which they are ahead of) is all spot on. This is where it counts.

Matrix is doing something no other blockchain is doing — rather than focusing on a single niche like scalability (ie EOS) or raw performance like HPB they are trying to solve ALL of the problems — speed, ease of use, security, mining, and AI. That’s a massive ask.

So what do we all need to do? We need to chill. The exchanges WILL COME. Matrix WANTS to be on big exchanges and they will get there, but the timing may take longer than usual. Remember that a lot of other coins don’t have to deal with the ‘China factor’ where they have to tread lightly at the exchange and the funding level.

Also remember why you invested in Matrix. It’s because they’re doing something that no one else is doing. You always knew this was going to be a long term play so let it play. Some have pointed out that “we’re going to miss the bull run”. In the short-term, yes, but what do you think people are going to do with all of those profits they make from other coins? They will ask — “Where’s the next high profile project that I can reinvest those profits in?” “Ah, Matrix”. In fact, the closer we get to a test or mainnet launch we might realize even more gains given there will be more news.

I see all your concerns and they’re all warranted, but try to understand the reasons for things instead of just lashing out at the community and the admins. They’ve heard it all so it’s really just a constant repeat and a waste of their AND your time. It’s coming. Just be patient or if it doesn’t fit your time frame then sell and come back at a later time when they are listed or find another project that suits your timeframe. While there are some kinks, I would be surprised if you were able to find another project with such a low marketcap on par with Matrix given the magnitude of what they’re trying to achieve. This is, by far, the most undervalued mega project on the coin list.

I’m certain you’ll be hearing more from the team. Take the VC approach… sit back, help where you can, and wait for the cream to rise.