Listing policy

1Purpose and scope

This policy sets out the basis on which NioX admits an asset to trading, the standards an asset and its issuer must meet at all times, the review applied to every applicant and the grounds on which an asset is suspended or removed. NioX is the spot exchange operated by NIO X PTE. LTD., a company registered in Singapore.

NioX applies these standards under the permissions it holds to operate the market. Where those permissions change, or where the law that governs a market NioX serves changes, this policy and any listing decision made under it are read to give effect to that change.

This policy is binding on every applicant that seeks a listing and on every project whose asset is listed. Submitting an asset for review is an agreement to be bound by this policy in full. Admission to trading is never an endorsement of an asset, never a statement that an asset is sound and never advice to acquire, hold or dispose of an asset. NioX gives no investment advice.

NioX may amend this policy at any time. The version in force is the version published by NioX, and continued participation after a change takes effect is acceptance of the amended policy. NioX keeps these standards under review and updates them as markets, technology and the law develop.

2Eligibility and standards

An asset is admitted only where it satisfies each standard below and continues to satisfy each standard for as long as it trades. Meeting these standards is a condition of listing and not a guarantee of it. NioX is under no obligation to admit any asset and may decline any application at its sole and absolute discretion without giving reasons.

A tokenised real world asset must meet a further set of standards. The identity and financial soundness of the issuer and of the custodian that holds the underlying instruments must be established. The legal framework that binds the token to what backs it must be sound and enforceable. An independent party must attest to the reserves at a stated frequency and with adequate coverage. A holder must have a clear and workable route to redeem the token for what it represents.

Where an asset uses a novel structure or a technology these standards do not yet address, NioX applies the standards by analogy, measures the asset against the outcome each standard protects and may set additional requirements before the asset is admitted.

3Due diligence and review

Every applicant undergoes a documented due diligence and compliance review before any decision is reached. The review covers the legal classification of the asset in each market NioX serves, the standing and ownership of the issuer, the identities of the people who control the project, the results of sanctions, adverse media and financial crime screening, and the security and governance of the underlying protocol.

NioX may require an applicant to provide any information, document or independent report that NioX considers necessary, and may verify what is provided through its own sources and through third parties NioX appoints. An applicant warrants that everything it submits is accurate, complete and not misleading, and must tell NioX without delay of any change that would affect the review.

Where an applicant declines to provide requested information, or where NioX cannot satisfy itself on any standard, the application is refused. NioX may pause, extend or reopen a review at any time and is under no obligation to complete a review within any period.

4Listing committee

Each listing decision is made by a listing committee drawn from the compliance, legal, risk and operations functions of NioX. The committee acts independently of the commercial and business development functions of NioX, which hold no vote and no power to overturn a decision of the committee.

No fee, payment, incentive or other consideration is ever taken, requested or accepted in return for a listing, for a favourable review or for the speed of a review. A listing is never bought and never sold. Any offer of a payment for a listing outcome is grounds for immediate refusal of the application.

The committee records every decision together with the evidence it weighed and the reasons for the outcome, and NioX retains that record for each asset. A decision of the committee is final and binding, and NioX is not obliged to enter into correspondence about it.

5Ongoing obligations

Admission does not end the standards in this policy. A listed project must meet each obligation below for as long as its asset trades on NioX.

• The asset and its issuer must continue to meet every eligibility standard at all times.
• The issuer must disclose to holders, accurately and without delay, any information that a reasonable holder would consider material to the asset.
• The issuer must notify NioX without delay of any material change in the issuer, the project, the protocol, the supply schedule, the governing law or the legal classification of the asset.
• A tokenised real world asset must have an unqualified attestation of its reserves published on the stated cycle by an independent party.
• The issuer must respond to any request from NioX for information within the time NioX specifies.
• The issuer must cooperate with any review NioX conducts.

A failure to meet an ongoing obligation is grounds for suspension or removal under this policy.

6Continuous monitoring

NioX monitors every listed asset continuously for as long as it trades. Monitoring covers sanctions and financial crime screening of the asset and its principal holders, the depth and orderliness of the market, the behaviour of trading across venues, the health and finality of the underlying network, and any development affecting the issuer or the legal classification of the asset.

Every listed asset is also subject to a full periodic review at least once each year, and to an immediate review whenever a material change or a warning sign comes to the attention of NioX. NioX may use automated surveillance, external data and independent reports in its monitoring, may act on what that monitoring shows at any time and may extend its monitoring to meet an emerging risk in the wider market.

7Suspension and delisting

NioX may place an asset under review, suspend trading in an asset and remove an asset from the venue at its sole and absolute discretion. NioX will act in any of the following situations and may act in any other situation it considers to warrant action.

• A change in the law, or an instruction from a competent authority, makes continued listing unlawful or inappropriate.
• The legal classification of the asset changes such that listing would call for a permission NioX does not hold.
• The asset or its issuer no longer meets an eligibility standard or an ongoing obligation.
• A security failure, a protocol failure or a prolonged network halt threatens the integrity of the asset or the safety of holders.
• Liquidity falls below the level at which an orderly market can be maintained.
• There are signs of manipulation, of misleading or incomplete disclosure by the issuer, or of exposure to financial crime.
• An attestation for a tokenised real world asset is late, qualified or withdrawn.
• The issuer fails to cooperate with a review or to provide information NioX requests.

Where an asset is removed, NioX gives holders reasonable notice so that they may trade out of the asset or withdraw it before trading ends. Where the need to act at once leaves no room for notice, NioX may suspend or remove the asset immediately, and will keep withdrawal open for as long as the network and the law permit. NioX is not liable for any loss arising from a suspension or a removal made under this policy.

8Conflicts of interest

NioX controls conflicts of interest in every listing decision. No person takes part in a decision on an asset in which that person, or a connected person, holds an interest that could affect the decision.

Everyone involved in a listing decision is bound by the conflicts of interest policy and the personal account dealing rules of NioX, and must declare any holding or interest in an asset under review before the decision is reached. Where a conflict cannot be managed, the person is removed from the decision.

No commercial relationship between NioX and an issuer, and no holding by NioX or its staff, influences a listing decision. These controls apply to admission, to ongoing review and to any decision to suspend or remove an asset.