Why are premines considered a red flag?

A premine concentrates coins with insiders before the public can participate, creating a starting imbalance. It can mean a handful of addresses hold a large share of supply from day one, that insiders profit without contributing ongoing work, and that the network is more easily influenced by large holders. Even when a premine is disclosed honestly, the structural effect remains: it is a head start the public never had. Fair-launch projects like Malairte avoid the structure entirely. A premine is not always fraud, but it is always an imbalance baked in at the origin.