Key Points
In 2024, wash trading on Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Coinbase‘s Base was estimated to be around $2.57 billion.
This data was provided by the analysts at Chainalysis.
Token Launches and Trading Patterns
Chainalysis also reported that nearly 5% of all tokens launched in 2024 showed patterns similar to pump-and-dump schemes.
This information was shared in a blog post by the New York-based firm.
Over 3 million tokens were launched in 2024, with more than 1.3 million (over 40%) listed on decentralized exchanges.
However, only a small percentage of these tokens, just 1.7%, have been actively traded in the last 30 days.
Chainalysis suggests that this could be due to many tokens being “abandoned shortly after creation,” possibly due to lack of interest.
They also note that some of these tokens could have been part of short-lived schemes such as pump-and-dumps or rug pulls.
Decentralized Exchange Pools
In addition, nearly 90% of decentralized exchange pools suspected of being involved in pump-and-dump schemes were “rugged” by the address that created the DEX pool, according to Chainalysis.
The remaining pools were rugged by addresses funded by the pool or token creator.
In some instances, the pool creator and the address that rugged the pool appeared to be funded by the same source, indicating a possible coordinated effort to exploit users.
The wash trading volume across Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Coinbase’s Base was approximately $2.57 billion in 2024.
However, Chainalysis acknowledges that they used “different methodologies” to detect various types of wash trading.