From the first days of digital coins, crypto presales gave honest teams a practical way to raise money without awkward meetings with demanding investors. Crypto presale pioneers, perhaps, never thought a day would come when “top crypto presale scams” would be the title of a trending Google post.
Back in the day, everyday people who spotted those opportunities early sometimes woke up to discover their modest buy-ins had grown into fortunes, just for buying into projects such as Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon.
Lately, though, the tone has changed. Presales that once heralded fresh innovation now attract a different crowd: fraudsters who spin bold promises, collect funds, and disappear before a single line of code ships.
If you go to Google browser today and search for top crypto presale scams, your screen will be laced with just enough information to make you doubt the value and true intention of any project offering you an ICO.
So this article will be talking about some top crypto presale scams, as well as answering the question: Have crypto presales lost their true value and original intention?
What are crypto presales?
A crypto presale is the early opportunity given to an investor to buy a project’s tokens before they’re listed publicly. In return for investing early, the investors actually get tokens at a discounted price, often with extra perks like staking rewards, whitelist access, or governance rights.
Although it’s become a common strategy for projects to raise funds, some bad actors (rug projects) promise huge gains, only to vanish with the investors’ capital, leaving them in tears.
2017 was the year of the ICO boom, when new projects raised a sum of $11.9 billion. However, a report by advisory firm Statista Group reveals that 80% of the total launched projects were identified as scams. Ever since, the crypto space has changed, and investors have become more careful.
Top crypto presale scams: When presales go wrong
1. Big Eyes Coin: Viral hype, zero substance
Big Eyes Coin made its way to the crypto market with high expectations. The project launched its pre-sale in August 2022, where investors could purchase tokens at $0.0001. With endorsements from influencers, the project quickly gained traction.
It listed on Uniswap, but instead of investors being in joy, they were greeted with a nightmare. Predicting from its pre-sale traction, there were expectations of the token listing at around $0.0006, but this expectations was meant with a shock as the listing price was low at $0.0000743. Unfortunately, the price declined even more to $0.000007 within hours, marking a 99% loss for early investors.
2. Froggy Coin: Textbook crypto rug pull with a touch of misery
Froggy coin is one of the top crypto presale scams. In early 2024, sold as a meme token, Froggy coin got the attention of investors through playful branding, and as usual through promises of huge profits. After the hype on social media platforms, the devs carried out a rug pull, draining liquidity and causing the token’s value to crash, leaving investors with worthless assets.
Froggy’s Price Chart
3. X Token Presale: A chilling scam disguised as breaking crypto news
The X Token presale scam is actually that of sophistication. It is one of the top crypto presale scams, but this one was marketed through an ad that takes you to a website that looks like a news outlet talking about the launch of the cryptocurrency and how you can join the pre-sale. The most intriguing details about this scam? It offered different benefits on the basis of the tier you chose.
4. Dogetti (DETI): Presale hype ends in radio silence
Dogetti held a presale and heavily promoted community rewards and ecosystem growth. Nevertheless, after the presale closed, the project’s team disappeared, their socials went silent, and investors were left powerless, unable to access or trade their tokens.
The benefits included a personalized investment recommendations and assistance from Elon Musk himself via WhatsApp (Tier 3 {+10,000 X Tokens}), to entering a raffle for a chance to win 1 of only 10 tickets to travel to Mars (Tier 2 {+20,000 X Tokens}) and lastly, to having a chance to win a Neuralink brain chip that directly interfaces the human brain with OpenAI through a raffle (Tier 1 {+30,000 X Tokens}).
5. Rebel Satoshi: A WIRED-Exposed Crypto Scam
A shocking account in WIRED reveals troubling red flags around Rebel Satoshi. Just before launch, developers abruptly altered tokenomics, locking investors out of promised rewards. Like classic exit scams, the team disabled withdrawals after the presale, while social media went dark. Investigators found fake team profiles and plagiarized whitepaper sections.
“They changed the rules when it was too late to back out,” Ryan testified. With over $2M reportedly lost, Rebel Satoshi joins the growing list of “community-driven” projects that vanished overnight. Experts warn: Always verify smart contracts before investing in hyped presales.
Top crypto presale scams: So are all presales scams now?
In the past, it is likely that about 80% of ICOs were scams, and i don’t think there’s any difference today. However, there are still legit projects hungry for funding. There are exceptions, but they can only be identified if you do your due diligence.
top crypto presale scams
So it is actually possible to invest in an ICO that generates returns. The complexity lies in pinpointing a legitimate offering with a high chance of being profitable. However, the truth is—legitimate ICOs will do everything possible to assure you they are not running away with your cash, from registering with regulatory bodies to having verifiable backgrounds.
Top crypto presale scams: How to evaluate crypto presales to minimize scams
Thinking of getting involved with a crypto presale offer? If yes, try using the checklist below to avoid mistakes and analyze a project chances of not running away with your money:
• Real-world utility
• Clear tokenomics
• Team with real faces
• Solid marketing plans
• Partnerships with reputable projects
• A solid staking or reward mechanisms
• Security measures and audits by reputable firms to protect investments from potential scams.
In addition, to avoid falling victim of top crypto presale scams, both those mentioned and those not mentioned here, ensure to use trusted platforms i.e, instead of doing crypto presales on Telegram/WhatsApp, opt for trusted exchanges and verified launchpads. Also note red flags like pressure tactics to get investors to act quickly.
Last line
Crypto presales promise of democratization of access to crypto investment is wavering. Instead of giving everyone a fair chance at the next big investment opportunities, it consistently gives folks an unfair shot at losses.
Notwithstanding, crypto presales in 2025 still hold huge upside. The Bit Gazette recommends that you stay careful, research, and research again. Then choose wisely, but always remember that even legitimate ICOs may not always deliver profit.
