Update: We performed the 100x split for Polkadot [IOU] (DOT) on August 21, 2020. For more details on this listing, please check our latest Help Center article.
On August 13th, we listed Polkadot [IOU] on Poloniex so that our traders could participate in Polkadot mainnet price discovery and receive mainnet DOT tokens once we list the mainnet asset. As we stated in our announcement and frequently asked questions (FAQ) article, prior to listing, we had already performed the upcoming 100x stock split for Polkadot. We did this early so our traders would have a consistent experience when other exchanges perform the stock split with the Polkadot mainnet launch next week.
Although we communicated that we performed the 100x stock split and ensured that there was adequate liquidity in the market before enabling full trading, the market quickly brought the price up to the pre-stock split price that was in line with other exchanges. As soon as we identified the rapid price increase, we moved the DOT [IOU] market into post-only mode to prevent further trading of this asset given the clear misunderstanding of what the asset is worth.
We have decided to re-list Polkadot [IOU] without the 100x stock split as XDOT on Poloniex. We will remove the current DOT [IOU] market and re-list this asset in XDOT/USDT in the next few days. All customers who have DOT [IOU] in their account as of August 14th will receive USDT as we clear out and remove the current version of DOT [IOU] from Poloniex. We will be refunding any customers who bought DOT [IOU] at a higher price than the fair market value and sold it at a lower price as a result. These refunds are being processed on August 15th. Any customers who received a profit from this misunderstanding will keep their profits.
When the Polkadot mainnet launches, we will perform the 100x stock split once again and move back to our DOT/USDT market. At the time that we perform this split, all customers who are holding XDOT will receive 100x the number of DOT [IOU] tokens but the DOT [IOU] price will be 100x lower than the XDOT price. The new DOT/USDT market will remain a Polkadot [IOU] market until we list the mainnet version of DOT. If you have any questions on DOT [IOU] or the upcoming stock split, please refer to our FAQ in our Help Center. We will continue to update this article with relevant information as we perform the stock split next week and list the mainnet asset later this year.
We want to provide a reminder to all traders to do your own research before trading any asset. It is very important to understand what you are trading, what it is worth, and what the risks are. We’re glad that we were able to minimize the risk for our customers in this instance but want to make sure that our traders better understand what they are trading. As a result, we will be updating our new exchange design to make warnings more prominent moving forward.