CEX delistings stabilize at 400-500 tokens per quarter as exchanges shift toward quality over quantity
After a record 786 tokens were axed in a single quarter last year, centralized exchanges have settled into a steady rhythm of culling, and new listings just hit a two-year low.
Centralized crypto exchanges are removing tokens faster than they’re adding them, and that’s apparently the new normal. According to a CryptoRank report published on July 10, delistings across major CEXs have settled into a range of 400 to 500 tokens per quarter throughout 2026, down from the record 786 tokens purged in Q2 2025 but still dramatically higher than the 67 delistings recorded in Q1 2024.
Q2 2026 saw just 351 new token listings, the fewest since Q3 2023, while delistings continued to outpace additions for the second consecutive Q2 period.
The great crypto cleanup, by the numbers
Gate.io has been the most aggressive pruner by a wide margin. The exchange accounted for 573 delistings in the first half of 2026 alone, representing nearly 60% of all delistings across tracked exchanges. On the opposite end, OKX delisted zero tokens during the same period.
The category breakdown for H1 2026 delistings tells its own story. DeFi tokens led the chopping block with 207 removals. GameFi followed with 141 delistings, and meme tokens accounted for 98.
Meme token listings in particular have cratered. From 196 new meme listings in Q4 2024, the number collapsed 79% to just 41 in Q2 2026. GameFi listings fell even harder, dropping 84% from their Q2 2024 peak.
June 2026 underscored the trend further, with only 82 tokens added across exchanges during the entire month.
Tokenized assets fill the void
Tokenized assets now account for nearly 20% of new listings in H1 2026, up from less than 7% in 2025.