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Binance is stealing all of our airdrops.
Swapping Alpha tokens now outperforms being active on-chain participants.
But should you drop everything and start pumping volume here instead?
Here’s a breakdown of how it works and my full strategy for winning this meta:
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The undiluted alpha (if you were early)
Binance launched the new Alpha 2.0 back in March without much hype.
The main purpose was for Binance CEX users to purchase tokens only available on DEXes (and not listed on Binance yet).
Not many used this platform, and this led to lucrative airdrops if you were early (even without doing much):
❍ 490 PROMPT
❍ 403 GM
❍ 3,500 EPT
❍ 4,276 ZORA
All we needed to do was hit this criteria:
Purchase tokens on Binance Alpha using Spot/Funding on Binance Exchange.
But the competition has increased, and Binance now requires two key criteria to qualify for future drops:
❍ Holdings on Exchange + Keyless Wallet
❍ Volume traded on Alpha tokens (both Exchange + Keyless Wallet)
With the launch of the SIGN airdrop, Binance converted the requirements into a new points system:
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Alpha Points explained
Alpha points are the new indicator to qualify for future airdrops and IDOs on Pancakeswap.
This involves:
❍ Balance Points
❍ Volume Points
I found it confusing to understand at first, but I finally understand how it works.
Here are some key pointers:
❍ Balance points only count for Alpha/Spot tokens
I thought I was smart to hold tokens on my Keyless Wallet and deposit them into DeFi tokens to earn yield.
But this doesn't count towards my Balance points, as only tokens that are listed on Binance will be considered.
There are some promotions for Simple Earn for USDC/USDT/FDUSD, so I plan to max them while contributing to my points.
❍ Volume points are only awarded for Alpha token purchases
There are 2 ways to find Alpha tokens:
1. Binance Exchange
Markets tab → Alpha
2. Keyless Wallet
Home tab → Alpha
Only swaps into Alpha tokens count towards volume generated, and there's no penalty if you swap back to the original token.
E.g. I swap 32 USDC into an Alpha token and swap back immediately, I'll only receive 5 points.
❍ Volume points are calculated per day
You're awarded volume points based on the cumulative volume generated per day.
The volume gets reset at the snapshot time, and you can accumulate volume again.
E.g. I swap $32 on Day 1 and $64 on Day 2, I'll receive 11 points (5+6) in total.
❍ Points are only calculated for the past 15 days
Points are on a 15-day rolling basis.
Even if you make a big trade and generate significant volume on one day:
It will count for nothing once 15 days are up.
This would mean that consistency is more important than making just one big swap.
i.e. Binance wants you to make swaps daily (and hopefully convert you to a loyal user).
But there are 2 different ways of making swaps, and here's how the fees stack up:
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Fees are the main killer
We can swap to Alpha tokens via 2 methods, and each has its own fees:
❍ Exchange
Slippage + Trading Fee + Priority
❍ Keyless Wallet
Slippage + Trading Fee + Gas Fee
Binance has a trading promotion for the Keyless Wallet:
The 0.5% trading fee is on until 17 Sept 2025.
So I'm taking advantage of this and trading on the Keyless Wallet instead of the Binance CEX.
There are 4 main networks to purchase Binance Alpha tokens:
❍ Ethereum (high gas)
❍ BSC (high gas)
❍ Base (high slippage)
❍ Solana
The gas fees on the Keyless Wallet are high on Ethereum (~$0.20) and BSC (~ $0.43).
While the gas is low on Base, the slippage is higher for my swaps.
So I've decided to swap my tokens on Solana instead:
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Better rates for Solana Alpha tokens
Here are the pricing differences when swapping 520 USDC to ai16z on both the CEX and Keyless Wallet:
The slippage difference is minimal, so the rates are comparable.
While the fees are slightly higher on the Keyless Wallet:
I'm generating swap volume on Jupiter (which could help me qualify for the next Jupiter airdrop).
The main fees I incur for Solana swaps are gas fees:
The Keyless Wallet quotes higher gas fees than normal.
I usually pay 0.00014 SOL (~$0.02) per transaction on Phantom per swap.
But I pay ~ 0.0003 SOL on the Keyless Wallet.
So the fees can add up if you're making multiple swaps.
But across all the networks, I find that Solana has the best rates.
Here's my strategy for Binance Alpha moving forward:
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Analysing past rounds
The latest round of airdrop and IDO required 80 and 82 points respectively.
Across the 15-day threshold, this means we need an average of 5.5 points.
If we have ≥ $100 in our Binance account:
We need to hit ≥ $32 in volume per day, which still seems reasonable.
But the minimum points will likely increase following the hype, so I would aim for ≥ 10 points per day.
I would have to hit ≥ $512, or ≥ $256 per day (if I hold ≥ $1k in Binance).
The maximum amount I'm willing to swap per day is $2,048:
For that extra point (11 to 12), it doesn't make sense to swap another $2,048 with additional slippage.
So here's what I plan to do:
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My strategy
I predict that many would give up once this becomes too PvP, which could reduce the minimum points requirement.
But for now, the slippage on Solana swaps still seem reasonable while I'm building my footprint there.
Hopefully, all of my swap volume will count towards the Jupiter airdrop or at least show that I'm an active Solana user.
As compared to swapping on the CEX itself that doesn't build my wallet's footprint.
In summary, this is what I plan to do:
Hit 10 points per day via 2 routes (depending on your free capital):
❍ Hold $100 (1) and swap $512 daily (9)
❍ Hold $1,000 (2) and swap $256 daily (8)
This could likely change if Binance increases the minimum Alpha points requirement for future airdrops/IDOs.
I'm interested in knowing your strategy for Binance Alpha.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
I'm compiling all of the requirements for every Binance Alpha airdrop/IDO:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d…
Thanks for reading!
If you want more like this:
1. Follow me @FIP_Crypto
2. Like and RT this post
3. Join my Discord server for more exclusive alpha: discord.gg/ESfXxgGHgR
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