Scams Database

Crypto scams we've verified

We document only scams with regulatory enforcement actions or on-chain confirmed theft. Total verified losses across all cases: $66.4B from 10 cases.

Regulatory actionExchange Collapse2022

FTX Exchange Collapse

Second-largest global crypto exchange, valued at $32B months earlier, collapses in 9 days after CoinDesk reveals Alameda-FTX balance sheet irregularities. Founder SBF convicted on 7 fraud counts.

$8.0B~1,000,000 affected

Regulatory actionExchange Collapse2022

Three Arrows Capital Default

Largest crypto hedge fund of its era defaults on $3.5B in loans after concentrated exposure to Terra and Grayscale Bitcoin Trust collapses. Triggered cascading defaults across crypto lenders.

$3.5B~27 affected

Regulatory actionExchange Collapse2022

Celsius Network Collapse

Crypto lending platform offering up to 17% APY on deposits freezes withdrawals June 2022, files bankruptcy July 2022. Founder Alex Mashinsky convicted of fraud 2024.

$4.7B~600,000 affected

Regulatory actionAlgorithmic Stablecoin2022

Terra/LUNA Collapse

Algorithmic stablecoin UST lost its dollar peg and hyperinflated its pair LUNA into a death spiral, erasing $40B+ in market cap in 4 days.

$40.0B~1,000,000 affected

On-chain confirmedRug Pull2021

Squid Game Token Rug Pull

Memecoin capitalizing on the Netflix show's popularity drains $3.4M in liquidity and disappears 6 days after launch. Token held no Netflix affiliation.

$3M~43,000 affected

Regulatory actionRug Pull2021

SafeMoon

BSC memecoin with 'reflection' tokenomics peaked at $5B market cap in 2021. Executives charged by SEC and DOJ in 2023 for diverting $200M+ to personal use.

$200M~1,500,000 affected

Regulatory actionPonzi Scheme2018

PlusToken

Chinese-origin MLM-crypto Ponzi promising 6-18% monthly 'AI trading' returns. Founders arrested in Vanuatu in June 2019. One of China's largest crypto criminal cases.

$2.9B~2,000,000 affected

Regulatory actionPonzi Scheme2016

BitConnect Ponzi

A 'lending platform' promising 1% daily returns via a proprietary trading bot. Collapsed in January 2018 after multiple state regulators issued cease-and-desist orders.

$2.6B~1,500,000 affected

Regulatory actionExchange Collapse2014

Mt.Gox Exchange Collapse

Tokyo-based exchange handling 70%+ of global Bitcoin trading loses 850,000 BTC to theft spanning years, files bankruptcy in February 2014.

$500M~24,000 affected

Regulatory actionPonzi Scheme2014

OneCoin

Fake 'cryptocurrency' that never actually existed on any blockchain. Masqueraded as crypto through MLM recruitment. Founder Ruja Ignatova disappeared in 2017 and is on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list.

$4.0B~3,500,000 affected