- Over 3.7 M crypto tokens launched since 2021 have become inactive as of March 2025.
- 1.8 million crypto projects failed in Q1 2025, the highest recorded in a single quarter.
- Meme coin surge and pump.fun launches fueled record token failures in 2024 and 2025.
The cryptocurrency market’s well-known volatile nature has led to the failure of many projects. According to GeckoTerminal and CoinGecko statistics, over 50% of new cryptocurrencies introduced since 2021 are no longer active in the market. The growing number of failed tokens has raised concerns about the long-term sustainability of the crypto ecosystem.
The Scale of Cryptocurrency Failures
The statistics from GeckoTerminal show that 3.7 million cryptocurrency projects out of 7 million listed in 2021 have stopped trading as of March 31, 2025, leading to 52.7% token failure. The failure statistics tracked a significant downward trend, reaching their highest numbers in the first quarter of 2025, witnessing 1.8 million project failures, amounting to 49.7% of the total failures recorded between 2021 and 2025.
The rapid increase in failures occurs concurrently with general market instability after major economic or political developments. For instance, the crypto market’s downward trend coincided with Donald Trump’s taking office in January 2025, which might have contributed to a surge in project failures.
Meme Coins and Low-Effort Projects Contribute to Failures
The rapid increase in token project failures can be attributed to several low-quality meme coins entering the market. Launching platforms like Pump.fun, which simplified the token creation process, led to an explosion of new cryptocurrency projects in 2024. However, the lack of substantial value in other cryptocurrency projects made them easily prone to failure in the market.
The rapidly growing number of coin failures during the 2020 to 2021 bull market stemmed from the accessibility of token deployment and the hype surrounding meme coins. Several tokens emerged without authentic utility or plans for long-term development, but they quickly gained popularity before their rapid demise.
The Breakdown of Failures by Year
The failure rate of cryptocurrencies varies significantly depending on the year of their launch. The market experienced a 70% failure rate of new cryptocurrencies in 2021, as 5,724 tokens disappeared. This trend continued into 2022, with over 3,500 projects failing, representing a 60% failure rate. However, the market experienced a major decline in failed tokens in 2023, with 289 projects failing from 4,000 listed tokens, reflecting a growing trend toward more sustainable projects.
Related: Will US Crypto Policies Cause a Financial Crisis? The ECB Thinks So
While most tokens launched in 2020 and 2021 faced inevitable failure, recent projects showed improved results. This suggests a growing maturity in the market, with a stronger focus on responsibility and utility.
Still, the sharp rise in failed cryptocurrencies challenges the market’s sustainable future. Although numerous crypto ventures have experienced massive failures, the market continues to attract new projects, testing their ability to navigate volatility, regulation, and sustainable operation.
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