Understand the vital signs of your crypto holdings to know when they’re dead, dying, or just taking a power nap.
Cryptocurrency markets have seen an unprecedented surge in both new tokens and failures. Last year alone, 11.6 million cryptos were wiped out — that’s 32,000 tokens dying every single day. While many were short-lived meme coins, some were once held in portfolios, slowly bleeding value, and still clung to by holders hoping for a comeback. But how do you know if your crypto is truly dead, a zombie, or just resting before a revival? In this article, you’ll learn how to check key indicators like trading activity, liquidity, and developer status to differentiate between tokens that are past saving and those still worth your watch.
The Crypto Mass Extinction Event: What Happened?
Since 2021, over half of all tracked cryptocurrencies have failed according to data from CoinGecko. Last year’s wipeout was brutal: 11.6 million tokens went to zero, representing 86% of all crypto deaths in five years. The last quarter saw the worst — 7.7 million tokens disappeared during a massive $19 billion liquidation event on October 10, 2025, the largest in crypto history.
This dramatic collapse was fed by an explosion in the number of tokens. From around 428,000 cryptos in 2021, the market ballooned to over 20 million by the end of 2025, fueled largely by token launch tools that made creating new coins easier than ever. This low barrier to entry created a flood of memecoins — many with no product, no revenue model, and no future — which were the hardest hit when liquidity dried up.
How to Tell if Your Crypto Is Dead or Just Sleeping
1. Trading Activity: The Pulse of Your Token
A safe initial test is to check if your crypto has any trading activity. CoinGecko marks tokens as “inactive” if untraded for 30 days. The reality? Zero trades in a day signals trouble; zero trades in a week means 99% dead; a month is almost certainly a death sentence. No volume means no demand, no price discovery, and no exit without crushing your own position.
Beware false volume from wash trading — bots creating fake activity to prop up a sinking token. Look for unique wallet interactions, not just raw volume numbers, to ensure real interest.
2. Delisting: A Death Sentence on Exchanges
Getting delisted from a major exchange often signals the effective end for a token. Exchanges remove cryptos due to low volume, regulatory problems, or poor project health. A token surviving only on tiny, low-tier venues with minute liquidity pools ($47, or less!) has little chance to recover.
3. Rugpulls: Murder, Not Death
Rugpulls are developer scams where liquidity pools are drained overnight. In early 2025, these scams accounted for over $2 billion in investor losses. Tokens still show in wallets but hold no extractable value and cannot recover.
Answer Box: How can I tell if my cryptocurrency is dead?
Check three key signs: lack of trading activity for over 30 days, removal from major exchanges (delisting), and drained liquidity pools from rugpull scams. Also, watch for signs like declining volume and abandoned developer activity. Tokens showing no real volume, liquidity, or updates are likely dead.
The Gray Area: Accumulation vs. Distribution
Not all tokens that look dead are beyond hope — some are "zombie" projects, technically alive but nearly inactive. Differentiating “accumulation” (buyers quietly loading the token at low prices) from “distribution” (steady selloffs without recovery) is crucial.
- Distribution: Price hits lower lows and lower highs. Volume spikes mainly during sell-offs. Holds no meaningful support; the project is abandoned.
- Accumulation: After a sharp sell-off (a "selling climax"), price trades sideways for weeks or months as “whales” absorb supply quietly. The price occasionally breaks below (the “spring”) to trigger stop losses but then rebounds on growing volume, signaling smart money entering.
Understanding market structure — a series of higher highs and higher lows on big timeframes — helps spot if a markedly down token could still spring back.
Data Callout: Salano’s Near-Death and Recovery
Salano (SOL) lost over 95% value between November 2021 and November 2022 after the FTX collapse. It spent 2023 stuck in a $13–$32 range with poor sentiment and low volumes. Despite appearing dead, it entered accumulation phase and broke out above this range in Q4 2023. Over the next year, it rallied beyond $263 — a textbook crypto resurrection driven by market structure, not just fundamentals.
Other Vital Signs to Monitor
Liquidity Depth
Market cap numbers are vanity metrics without real liquidity behind them. A token with $100 million market cap but only $50,000 in liquidity means you can’t sell without crashing price. A healthy crypto typically has liquidity pools holding 1–5% of its market cap. Less than this and you’re holding ghost liquidity.
Developer Activity
Active cryptos usually have ongoing software commits visible on repositories like GitHub. No commits for 6+ months suggests abandonment. But watch out: superficial commits (like trivial documentation changes) can fake activity. AI-generated code may blur these indicators further. Use coding analysis tools or LLMs to assess if developers are truly advancing the project.
What Could Go Wrong: Risks to Your Crypto Portfolio
- False hope prolongs losses: Holding dead tokens hoping for a miracle may tie up capital indefinitely.
- Wash trading misleads volume analysis: Fake volume hides token failures.
- Zombie projects drain investor focus: Large market caps but worthless projects waste time and attention.
- Liquidity drains: Sudden rugpulls or developer exits can vaporize your investment instantly.
- Market structure shifts: Bullish price action can reverse quickly; don’t let fear or hope cloud risk management.
Actionable Summary
- Monitor trading volume closely: no volume for 30 days = token likely dead.
- Check exchange listings and avoid tokens delisted by tier-one platforms.
- Beware of rugpulls by verifying locked liquidity and developer reputation.
- Analyze market structure for signs of accumulation vs. distribution before deciding your next move.
- Use intelligent tools to assess developer activity and code quality beyond mere commit counts.
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FAQ
Q: How can I tell if my crypto is dead or just undervalued?
A: Look beyond price to volume, liquidity, exchange listings, and developer activity. Healthy accumulation phase is marked by steady or rising volume despite low prices, stable liquidity, and active development.
Q: What is "wash trading" and how does it affect volume analysis?
A: Wash trading is when the same entity trades with itself to create fake volume, misleading investors about token activity. Always check unique wallet interactions, not just raw volume numbers.
Q: Can a token with low market cap recover?
A: While not impossible, low-cap tokens with poor liquidity and no exchange support rarely recover. Focus on market structure and buy into projects with sufficient liquidity and active markets.
Q: What are "rugpulls" in crypto?
A: Rugpulls are scams where developers quickly drain liquidity pools, leaving tokens worthless. Locked liquidity and developer transparency reduce risk.
Q: Does developer activity guarantee a crypto project is alive?
A: Not always. Check the quality and intent of commits. Superficial updates can fake activity, and AI-generated code complicates assessments. Genuine bug fixes and new features are good signs.
Disclaimer: This article provides educational content about cryptocurrencies and is not financial advice. Always conduct your own research before investing, and consider your personal risk tolerance.
Invest smart, stay vigilant, and keep learning. For deeper insights and real-time trade setups, check out Wolfy Wealth PRO — your trusted partner in crypto investing.
By Wolfy Wealth - Empowering crypto investors since 2016
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Disclosure: Authors may be crypto investors mentioned in this newsletter. Wolfy Wealth Crypto newsletter, does not represent an offer to trade securities or other financial instruments. Our analyses, information and investment strategies are for informational purposes only, in order to spread knowledge about the crypto market. Any investments in variable income may cause partial or total loss of the capital used. Therefore, the recipient of this newsletter should always develop their own analyses and investment strategies. In addition, any investment decisions should be based on the investor's risk profile
