1. What a Ponzi scheme is
A Ponzi scheme (a “money game”, 资金盘 in Chinese-speaking communities) takes in funds under the name of investing, yield, mining, quant trading, a DAO, nodes or a game, but the returns it promises do not come from any real business or output. They come from the principal of later participants. Typical features: fixed returns or returns far above market level, growth driven mainly by recruiting and multi-level commissions, a source of yield that cannot be explained or verified, funds controlled by a few people or by an unaudited contract, and rules or withdrawals that can be changed or paused at any time.
Whatever the packaging, whichever chain it runs on and whatever technical terms it borrows, if the returns depend in substance on new money coming in, it is a Ponzi scheme.
2. Why it must collapse
A Ponzi scheme creates no value; it only moves money. It survives only while new inflow exceeds the payouts it owes, and new inflow cannot grow forever. When growth slows and payout pressure exceeds inflow, the operators restrict withdrawals, change the rules or simply disappear. Collapse is not a possibility; it is a matter of when.
It is a negative-sum game. The operators take a cut, multi-level commissions take another, and what remains is not enough for every participant to recover their principal. A large number of participants must lose, and they far outnumber those who gain.
3. The risk to participants
Participants do not face different levels of risk, only different distances from the collapse. Early entrants look safer only because the collapse has not reached them yet; late entrants are usually the ones left holding the bag. Everyone faces the same high risk; the only variable is time.
A few people do extract large sums. That money is the principal other participants put in; every unit gained by one person is a unit lost by others.
In most jurisdictions, organising, promoting or recruiting for a Ponzi scheme in exchange for commissions can be unlawful or criminal. Even a participant who only “invested” usually has no legal protection for their principal, and recovery is rare.
4. Our position and limits
The sole purpose of this site is to help people who are already in, or are considering entering, such projects to see the facts clearly and leave as early as possible.
- We do not recommend, endorse or promote any project. The appearance of a project name, contract address or website on this site does not mean we approve of it, that it is worth joining, or that it is “safer than others”.
- We charge users for the analysis service and the API; that is our only source of revenue, and users may pay in cryptocurrency. We do not accept tokens, funds or any other benefit from project operators, and we do not accept payment to be listed, to change a score, or to remove or delay an analysis. Paying and free users see exactly the same report. We have no affiliation with any project, team or individual we analyse.
- We do not advise on “which scheme to join” or “when to enter”. Nothing on this site should be read as “this project is still safe for now”.
- We will never ask you to transfer funds, make a deposit, or provide a private key or seed phrase. Anyone making such a request in our name is a scammer.
- We may decline to analyse any particular project, without giving a reason.
5. Limits of the analysis
- Risk scores, stage assessments and risk signals are produced by automated programs (including AI models) from public on-chain data, third-party APIs and the project’s own public website. They are not individually verified by a person.
- Data may be incomplete, delayed or wrong. On-chain data may cover only part of the period or only some assets; third-party services may be unavailable; a project website may change or block fetching. Conclusions may not match reality.
- A low score does not mean a project is safe, and a high score is not a legal finding. Our results are a technical reading of public information. They are not a legal characterisation of, factual accusation against, or reputational judgement on any project, team or individual.
- Stage assessments (expansion, plateau, decline, exit) describe the trend in fund flow; they are not predictions. A project in the “expansion” stage can collapse at any moment.
6. Disclaimer
- Content on this site is for information only. It is not investment advice, financial advice, legal advice, or a solicitation or inducement to participate in anything.
- You are fully responsible for every decision you make. This site and its operators accept no liability for any direct or indirect loss arising from the use of, or reliance on, its content.
- Comply with the laws of your country or region. Where participating in, organising or promoting such projects is unlawful where you are, nothing on this site should be read as assisting, encouraging or inciting that conduct.
- If you believe an analysis contains a factual error, contact us at [email protected] with verifiable evidence. We will check it and correct it where necessary. We do not act on removal requests that come without evidence.
- We may change this notice at any time; changes take effect when published on this page.
- By continuing to use this site you confirm that you have read, understood and agree to all of the above.