The TON blockchain ecosystem has experienced a significant downturn. Its largest tokens by market capitalization have fallen sharply. Declines range from 30% to 50% from all-time highs. This drop comes shortly after several tokens were listed on major exchanges. Dogs (DOGS), Hamster Kombat (HMSTR), and Catizen (CATI) are among the affected, even Toncoin (TON) has seen an 8% decrease in a week.
Market capitalization for TON ecosystem tokens continues to shrink. Trading volumes have fallen by over 27% to $675 million, and Binance data suggests traders are selling these once-popular tokens.
DOGS has plummeted 58% since its August 26 listing. It now trades at $0.0006599. The token had no vesting period, allowing immediate trading post-airdrop. In response, the DOGS team announced plans for a token burn. This move aims to reduce supply and potentially increase value, and token holders will vote on the number of unclaimed coins to burn.
Hamster Kombat's HMSTR token has lost 50% of its value since launching on September 26. Initial excitement quickly turned bearish. The token price briefly reached $0.014 on some exchanges before rapidly declining. Users complained about unfair reward distribution and rule changes. Many found their rewards worth only a few dollars and some even struggled to sell due to exchange restrictions on small orders. Despite the price drop, HMSTR futures open interest remains stable. Coinglass data shows it holding at $60 million since early October.
Catizen's CATI token has fallen 50% since September 20. The project faced criticism for changing token distribution rules. Initially, 43% of CATI was meant for players, but this was reduced to 30% before distribution. Players also discovered that in-game spending heavily influenced token allocation. This favored those who invested money over time. Many high-ranking players received fewer tokens than expected. The hashtag #catizenscam gained traction on social media. Users shared stories of disappointment with the project's execution.
Airdrops, once a popular user acquisition strategy, may be losing effectiveness. KeyRock analysts studied 62 airdrops across six blockchains in 2024. They found 88.7% of tokens showed significant price declines within 90 days. Small airdrops showed more short-term resilience. This may be due to lower selling pressure at launch, however, most tokens still declined over three months.
CryptoQuant analyst Maartunn told crypto.news that new TON ecosystem tokens often follow a hype cycle. "Initially, short-term expectations tend to be excessively high, while long-term expectations are often underestimated," he said.
Maartunn noted that while Hamster Kombat is currently popular, many meme coins will likely fail. Only those with strong fundamentals and network effects may survive long-term.
The TON ecosystem's recent struggles highlight the volatile nature of new crypto projects. As the market matures, investors may become more discerning about long-term value propositions.