Crypto scams turn deadlier in Q1 as rugpull losses surge 6,500%

Crypto Rugpulls wiped out nearly $ 6 billion in the first quarter of 2025, up 6,500%, compared to only $ 90 million a year earlier, according to data.

Web3 projects have lost nearly $ 6 billion rugpulls Since the start of 2025, an increase of 6,499% compared to the $ 90 million recorded during the same period last year, according to a new Dappradar report.

As Sara Gherghelas, Dappradar blockchain analyst notes, only one case explains most of the damage, because 92% of the amount “is linked to the Mantra incident”, which she describes as “one of the largest individual scams recorded in recent years”.

Despite the financial toll, the rugpulls have become less common. Dappradar found that “only 7 [incidents] have been reported so far “in 2025, compared to 21 at the beginning of 2024, marking a 66% drop in frequency, even if the losses have exploded.

The Mantra Network affair shows how misleading signals can hide at sight, say Gherghelas, adding that the top of the platform in unique active wallets “was only 64 years old, recorded in December 2024.”

“Apart from this brief, the daily interactions of the portfolio regularly varied between 1 and 11, with several days showing total activity.

Sara Gasshqhelas

Gherghelas claims that transaction data also raised concerns because certain days “record up to 66 transactions”, adding that “the activity is just as often rising to zero”. Irregular models can indicate “inorganic commitment – common signs in the DAPPs which can be manipulated to seem more active than they are,” explains Gherghelas.