Crypto token failures reached a record high in Q1 2025, with 1.8 million projects shutting down, according to CoinGecko. The report showed that one in four tokens launched since 2021 failed between January and March this year.
Shaun Paul Lee, a research analyst at CoinGecko, said nearly 7 million crypto tokens have been listed since 2021. Out of those, over 3.7 million tokens have already stopped trading.
“The first quarter of 2025 alone saw the collapse of 1.8 million tokens,” Lee said in the April 30 report. That number is the highest ever recorded in a single year and makes up nearly half of all token failures. CoinGecko tracked only tokens that had at least one trade and included those from Pump.fun that passed the bonding curve. The data excludes completely inactive listings with no activity.
Pump.fun Linked to Spike in Crypto Token Projects Collapsing
Pump.fun launched in January 2024 as a token creation platform. Since then, it has seen a sharp rise in crypto token projects, mostly memecoins and simple contract-based tokens. CoinGecko linked this tool to the surge in crypto token failures. In 2024 alone, over 3 million new tokens entered the market, far more than the 835,000 launched in 2023. The report showed that about 98% of tokens created through Pump.fun failed. Only a small percentage managed to trade beyond the platform.
Lee said, “Before the launch of Pump.fun in 2024, cryptocurrency failures numbered in the low six digits.” He added that between 2021 and 2023, only 12.6% of all failures took place.
Even during Pump.fun’s strongest week in November 2024, only 1.67% of tokens transitioned to open markets. Most collapsed without gaining traction.
Trump Market Impact Coincided With Token Shutdowns
CoinGecko linked the recent wave of crypto token shutdowns to broader market pressure. The inauguration of Donald Trump in January 2025 triggered Bitcoin’s rally to $94,952. However, the market declined shortly afterward. This turbulence contributed to many crypto token failures, as investors pulled back from high-risk assets. Lee mentioned “broader market turbulence” as a key factor behind the shutdowns.
Pump.fun’s activity surged during this time. Its weekly trading volume peaked after Trump’s memecoin launch on Jan. 18. But by March, both crypto and stock markets showed high volatility. Trump’s tariff threats led to further instability.
CoinGecko co-founder Bobby Ong released a separate report on March 6. He said memecoin interest dropped following poor launches. Ong highlighted the case of the LIBRA token, which saw limited success.
According to the CoinGecko report, tokens created before 2024 had a better chance of survival. Failures before Pump.fun stayed under six digits. But once token creation became easier, the market was flooded with short-lived projects.