53.2% of Cryptocurrencies Launched Since 2021 Have Ceased Trading

VADODARA, January 14, 2026 — According to data from CoinGecko, 53.2% of the approximately 20.2 million cryptocurrencies launched between mid-2021 and the end of 2025 are no longer trading, a stark indicator of market Darwinism that demands a rigorous daily crypto analysis. This failure rate, reported by CoinDesk, the systemic risks embedded in a market characterized by low barriers to entry and high speculative leverage.

Market Context & Background

This wave of token failures mirrors historical cycles of speculative excess, such as the 2017-2018 ICO boom and bust, but operates at a vastly larger scale due to automated deployment via smart contracts. The period from 2021 onward saw unprecedented retail and institutional capital inflows, driven by narratives around decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Consequently, the market's liquidity profile became increasingly fragmented, with shallow order books amplifying volatility. Underlying this trend is the double-edged nature of Ethereum's EIP-4844 implementation, which reduced transaction costs but also lowered the economic cost of launching low-quality tokens. Related developments include ongoing tests of Bitcoin's liquidity zones amid Federal Reserve policy shifts and institutional moves toward tokenization that contrast with retail speculation.

What Happened?

CoinGecko's on-chain forensic data indicates that of the 20.2 million cryptocurrencies launched since mid-2021, 10.75 million have ceased trading. The delistings surged in 2025, with 11.6 million projects removed that year alone—a sharp increase from 1.3 million in 2024 and 2,584 in 2021. A significant clustering occurred in Q4 2025, when 7.7 million tokens disappeared in three months, representing 35% of all failures since 2021. This period followed a "liquidation domino" event on October 10, 2025, which saw $19 billion in leveraged positions liquidated simultaneously, according to exchange liquidity maps. The report attributes this to the market's vulnerability to short-term speculation and projects lacking robust technological foundations.

Technical Analysis & Price Action

Market structure suggests that the high failure rate has created a persistent Fair Value Gap (FVG) in altcoin liquidity, with many tokens trading below their initial issuance prices. Bitcoin's current price action near $97,148 masks underlying weakness in the broader crypto asset universe. Key support for Bitcoin lies at the $92,000 level, corresponding to a 0.618 Fibonacci retracement from the 2025 high. A break below this invalidation level could trigger further altcoin capitulation. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) for aggregate altcoin markets remains in oversold territory, indicating sustained selling pressure. Bullish invalidation for a broader market recovery is set at Bitcoin holding above $92,000 with increasing on-chain accumulation. Bearish invalidation is a weekly close below $88,500, which would confirm a breakdown of the current order block and likely precipitate another liquidity grab.

By The Numbers

Why It Matters

For institutional investors, this data highlights the critical need for due diligence focused on on-chain metrics like developer activity, transaction volume, and network security, as outlined in frameworks from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The high failure rate exacerbates counterparty risks in decentralized finance protocols that integrate these tokens. For retail participants, it the perils of chasing low-market-cap narratives without understanding tokenomics or technological viability. The market's low barrier to entry, while democratizing innovation, has led to a saturation of projects that fail to achieve product-market fit, draining liquidity from more established assets.

Community Sentiment

Market analysts on X/Twitter have noted that the delisting wave reflects a "natural selection" process, with one quant stating, "The 53.2% failure rate is a statistical inevitability in a zero-sum game with infinite supply." Bulls argue that this cleansing could benefit high-quality projects by reducing noise and consolidating liquidity. However, bears warn that the concentration of failures in Q4 2025 suggests systemic leverage unwinds may not be complete, potentially pressuring even blue-chip altcoins.

Price Prediction / Future Outlook

Bullish Case: If Bitcoin maintains support above $92,000 and on-chain data indicates sustained accumulation by long-term holders, the market could see a rotation into fundamentally sound altcoins with robust technology. This would be characterized by a decrease in new token launches and a focus on existing projects with proven utility, potentially leading to a stabilized altcoin market by mid-2026.

Bearish Case: A break below Bitcoin's $88,500 support could trigger a gamma squeeze in derivatives markets, accelerating altcoin delistings. Under this scenario, the failure rate may climb toward 60% as liquidity evaporates, with only tokens having deep volume profiles and institutional backing surviving. This could prolong the market's consolidation phase into late 2026.