PlusToken

Rug Pull

Lending · $PLUS · born 2018 · ✝ 2019

A 'high-yield wallet' that became one of crypto's largest Ponzi schemes.

PlusToken was a wallet and investment app, mostly targeting users in Asia, promising outsized returns. It collapsed when operators stopped withdrawals and absconded with billions in user crypto.

Peak: ~$2B+ in user funds
Cause: Rug Pull
Year of death: 2019

☠️ Cause of death

Returns were paid from new deposits rather than real yield; operators halted withdrawals and were later arrested, while seized coins moving on-chain pressured markets.

📓 Lessons left behind

—Guaranteed high yields on deposits are unsustainable.
—Custodial 'wallets' can be exit-scam vehicles.
—Large hidden treasuries can distort market prices when liquidated.

🌱 The idea that survived

Self-custody

The principle that holding your own keys avoids trusting an operator who can run off with funds.

#ponzi#wallet#yield