In early April 2025, the crypto community was shaken by mounting allegations that the Mantra Network may have orchestrated a rugpull, raising urgent questions about the due diligence users apply when engaging with dapps and tokens. While the full story is still unfolding, the incident highlights a broader issue that continues to challenge the Web3 ecosystem: how can users accurately assess the credibility of a decentralized application in real time?
The decentralized nature of blockchain promises openness and financial freedom, but it also means that bad actors can operate with minimal oversight. Rugpulls and exit scams remain a persistent threat, especially in ecosystems where projects can rapidly gain traction through hype, only to disappear with user funds overnight.
In this context, data becomes a critical defense tool. Platforms like DappRadar track on-chain activity in real time, offering users transparency into the behavior of dapps across multiple blockchains. From monitoring unique active wallets to analyzing transaction volumes and token flows, this data plays a vital role in identifying suspicious behavior early, before it’s too late.
What is a rugpull — and why do they still happen?
A rugpull is one of the most damaging forms of exit scams in the crypto space. It typically occurs when developers of a dapp, protocol, or token suddenly withdraw all liquidity or user funds and disappear, leaving investors with worthless assets and no recourse. Despite increasing awareness and more tools to detect suspicious behavior, rugpulls remain a recurring issue, particularly in DeFi and newly launched token ecosystems.
There are different types of rugpulls, but most fall into two main categories:
- Soft rugpulls: Developers or insiders dump large amounts of tokens on the market over time, causing a sharp price crash without technically abandoning the project.
- Hard rugpulls: The team disables token transfers, removes liquidity from decentralized exchanges, or shuts down smart contracts, effectively ending the project and walking away with stolen user funds.
These scams often rely on hype cycles, social engineering, and fake metrics to attract users. Projects may advertise high APYs, launch with anonymous teams, or simulate engagement using bots or spoofed transactions.
What makes rugpulls particularly harmful is how quickly they can happen, and how difficult it can be to spot the warning signs without access to transparent, real-time data.
The role of data in identifying red flags
While rugpulls can happen fast, they often leave traces before the collapse. On-chain data, especially when aggregated and contextualized, offers a critical window into a project’s health and legitimacy. This is where DappRadar becomes an essential tool for both casual users and seasoned Web3 participants.
DappRadar tracks over 17,000 dapps across more than 60 blockchains. This helps users see which projects are growing in a healthy way, and which ones might be showing signs of manipulation. Here are a few of the metrics that can help uncover red flags:
- Unique Active Wallets (UAW): A sudden spike in UAW without a clear reason, or a sharp drop shortly after a token launch or liquidity event, could suggest bot activity or user exit following insider dumps.
- Transaction volume and count: Unusually high volume paired with low user activity may indicate wash trading or internal transfers meant to inflate engagement metrics.
- Smart contract transparency: Projects with unverified smart contracts, limited GitHub activity, or anonymous developer teams offer less accountability. These elements can be checked directly through a dapp’s profile or linked resources on DappRadar.
- Engagement over time: Sustained, organic growth in users and transactions over weeks or months is often a good sign. In contrast, dapps that spike overnight are worth a second look.
When viewed in isolation, these indicators may not tell the full story, but together, they create a reliable picture of whether a dapp is gaining genuine traction or operating on borrowed time.
The Mantra Network case: timeline and on-chain red flags
Mantra Network, listed on DappRadar and operating on Polygon, has recently come under scrutiny following accusations of orchestrating a rugpull. While investigations and community discussions are ongoing, a closer look at on-chain activity reveals patterns that could have raised early concerns.
According to data, the platform’s all-time high in Unique Active Wallets (UAW) was just 64, recorded in December 2024. Outside of that brief spike, daily wallet interactions consistently ranged between 1 and 11, with multiple days showing zero activity altogether. This lack of consistent user engagement points to low traction, a potential red flag for any project claiming growth or adoption.
A similar pattern is visible in the transaction data. While some days registered as many as 66 transactions, activity just as often dropped back to zero. These erratic fluctuations suggest volatility in user behavior and possibly inorganic engagement — common signs in dapps that may be manipulated to appear more active than they are.
For DappRadar PRO Members, deeper insights are available, including direct access to the project’s smart contracts. In the case of Mantra, users can use this data to investigate contract interactions via PolygonScan, including the latest token movements, contract ownership, and wallet distributions. A quick scan of token holders, for instance, can help reveal whether supply is overly concentrated, a scenario that often precedes exit scams.
While none of these metrics can confirm malicious intent on their own, the combination of low consistent user activity, unstable transaction trends, and limited transparency around token distribution creates a pattern worth scrutinizing, especially when combined with a narrative that may overpromise on development or utility.
Rugpull trends: is 2025 off to a better start — or just a different risk landscape?
While incidents like Mantra Network attract attention, they’re far from isolated. Rugpulls remain one of the most persistent threats in the Web3 space. But the data tells a more nuanced story, 2025 is shaping up to be a year of fewer, but far more impactful scams.
Since the beginning of 2025, the Web3 ecosystem has lost nearly $6 billion to rugpulls. Strikingly, 92% of that amount is tied to the Mantra incident, which has become one of the largest individual scams recorded in recent years.
In comparison, during the same period in early 2024 ,roughly three months and a few days into the year, total losses from rugpulls stood at just $90 million. This represents a staggering 6,499% increase in value lost when comparing 2025 to 2024.
However, while the financial damage has skyrocketed, the number of rugpulls has actually dropped. In early 2024, 21 separate incidents were recorded, while in 2025, only 7 have been reported so far, marking a 66% decrease in frequency year-over-year.
This shift suggests that rugpulls are becoming less frequent, but far more devastating when they do occur. The scams are increasingly sophisticated, often orchestrated by teams with polished branding and well-planned narratives.
The nature of rugpulls is evolving as well. In Q1 2024, most scams originated in DeFi protocols, NFT projects, and memecoins — all areas known for rapid hype cycles and low barriers to entry. In Q1 2025, however, the majority of rugpulls have occurred within the memecoin sector, highlighting how speculative token trends continue to be fertile ground for bad actors.
Mantra Network, which presented itself as a legitimate DeFi platform, sits at the crossroads of these trends: a project that marketed utility, operated quietly on-chain, and ultimately collapsed in spectacular fashion.
What’s clear is that the risk landscape is shifting, and so must the way users evaluate new dapps. With fewer scams but exponentially higher losses, the need for real-time data and transparency tools like DappRadar has never been more critical.
How to use DappRadar to vet a dapp
With rugpulls becoming increasingly sophisticated, users need more than gut instinct or slick websites to evaluate new projects. DappRadar offers a powerful suite of tools that surface real on-chain data, helping users spot potential red flags and make more informed decisions before engaging with a dapp or token.
Here’s a simple checklist you can follow:
✅ Check Unique Active Wallets (UAW)
Consistent user activity is often a good sign. Look for dapps with stable or gradually increasing UAW over time. Sudden spikes followed by sharp drop-offs may indicate bot activity or short-lived hype.
✅ Analyze transaction volume and frequency
Projects with healthy growth typically show steady transaction trends. If you see extreme fluctuations or long stretches of inactivity, it could signal manipulation or a dead dapp.
✅ Explore Smart Contracts (for PRO users)
DappRadar PRO members can view deployed smart contracts directly from the dapp page. Use this to verify contract addresses, inspect activity on block explorers like Etherscan or PolygonScan, and check for proxy contracts or suspicious patterns.
✅ Review developer transparency
A public GitHub repository, team bios, and active community channels (like Discord or Telegram) are generally good signs. Dapps with anonymous teams and no verifiable development history deserve extra caution.
✅ Compare with top-ranked dapps
Use DappRadar’s rankings by chain and category to see how a new project stacks up against the market leaders. Healthy dapps often appear in weekly or monthly rankings based on user activity and performance, not just hype.
✅ Watch for verified projects
Look for badges or mentions of audits, KYC, or other verification signals. While not foolproof, these add an extra layer of credibility.
While no tool can guarantee full protection against rugpulls, combining these checks with a healthy dose of skepticism can significantly reduce your risk. The power of DappRadar lies in making this data accessible, and turning it into insights you can act on.
Transparency is the best defense
The Mantra Network controversy serves as a powerful reminder that in Web3, trust must be earned, not assumed. As the industry matures, so do the tactics used by bad actors. But the tools available to users are also getting stronger. Real-time on-chain data, like that provided by DappRadar, can help users separate hype from substance and identify early warning signs before it’s too late.
While rugpulls may never be fully eradicated, their impact can be drastically reduced when users are equipped with the right information. Whether you’re exploring a new DeFi protocol, gaming platform, or token project, taking a few minutes to dig into the data can protect your assets and contribute to a more transparent, trustworthy ecosystem.
DappRadar is committed to giving the Web3 community the tools and insights it needs to make smarter decisions. Keep exploring, stay skeptical, and always follow the data.
