Rug

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Decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol HyperVault is suspected to have executed a “rug pull,” as on-chain analytics account PeckShield noted an abnormal outflow of funds from the protocol, worth close to $3.6 million.

DeFi Protocol HyperVault Pulls The Rug

According to an X post by on-chain analytics account PeckShield, Hyperliquid-based DeFi protocol HyperVault appears to have pulled a quick one on its users, defrauding them of funds worth almost $3.6 million.

PeckShield noted that the stolen funds were bridged from Hyperliquid to Ethereum, swapped into ETH, and then 752 ETH were deposited into Tornado Cash. For the uninitiated, Tornado Cash is a popular crypto mixer that is typically used by hackers to erase their on-chain trail.

Notably, UPUMP tokens worth $191,494, USDC worth $107,358, WHYPE worth $1.55 million, and several other tokens were stolen from HyperVault. PeckShield noted that HyperVault have also deactivated all their socials – including the X handle – virtually confirming the rug pull.

To explain, a rug pull is a type of crypto scam where developers suddenly abandon a project and drain its funds, leaving investors with worthless tokens. It’s common in DeFi and NFT spaces, where anonymity and lack of regulation make quick exits easier.

HyperVault offered “unmanaged” auto-compounding vaults, strategy adapters, and keeper-bot harvests. These features helped users route their digital assets to lending, looping, and concentrated liquidity venues on HyperEVM.

Another X user HypingBull, commented, saying that they had been warning about HyperVault since September 4. In an X post, the user stated that the protocol’s developers lied to them about audits, adding:

I have just reached Pashov (blockchain audit firm) on Telegram, asking if Hypervaut is doing an audit via them. The answer was: “First time I hear the project with this name”. WTF? This is super suspicious. I am withdrawing all the funds from the protocol until the team clarifies what’s going on.

Unfortunately, users continued to deposit funds into the DeFi protocol, lured by the protocol’s promised 90% APR yields on HYPE tokens. However, the extraordinarily high-yield promises at the time did not raise the alarm among users.

That said, the HYPE token appears to be minimally impacted by this suspected rug pull, as it is trading at $42.89 at the time of writing, up 2.8% on the day. However, the token is down almost 25% over the past week.

Crypto Still The Wild West?

While the total crypto market cap now hovers over $3.8 trillion, the safety of users continues to be a major factor hindering the industry from mainstream adoption. For example, crypto phishing attacks recorded a significant surge in August 2025, impacting as many as 15,230 victims, resulting in a loss of $12 million in user funds.

Similarly, the THORChain Founder lost $1.35 million earlier this month after a deepfake Zoom and Telegram scam. At press time, Bitcoin (BTC) trades at $109,488, down 1.6% in the past 24 hours.

Bitcoin trades at $109,488 on the daily chart | Source: BTCUSDT on TradingView.com

Featured image from Unsplash.com, chart from TradingView.com

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In brief

Rumors circulated the internet over the weekend that Cristiano Ronaldo was set to release an official meme coin.
As a result, several fake tokens were launched with one touching a $143 million market cap before crashing down 98% all within 15 minutes.
On-chain analysis firm Bubblemaps told Decrypt it was likely an organized effort from a group of crypto influencers.

A spree of fake tokens inspired by soccer icon Cristiano Ronaldo cropped up over the weekend, thanks to rumors he was about to release a meme coin. But they don’t appear to be more than rumors as Decrypt could not find any credible sources on the matter.

One of the tokens reached a $143 million market cap before crashing 98%—all in just 15 minutes.

The CR7 token, based on the athlete’s nickname, appears to have been promoted by several influencers. But most of them have already deleted their posts. On-chain analyst firm Bubblemaps believes the fake meme coin was likely an organized group effort.

“It is likely that after Kanye West launched YZY, some influencers jumped onto the wave and claimed Cristiano Ronaldo would launch a token too, using their accounts,” pseudonymous Bubblemaps sleuth 0xToolman told Decrypt. “Then they launched an unendorsed token and posted the contract address, luring investors in, only to rug pull shortly after.”

Many of the rumors cling to Ronaldo’s partnership with Binance, which started in 2022 and has seen the release of four NFT collections. However, most fake tokens that launched were found on Solana, with at least five other seemingly fake CR7 meme coins launching on the network—all of which failed to break past a $1 million market capitalization.

It was only the influencer-pushed token that made any waves, soaring to a $143.18 million market cap in just six minutes. But the buzz was fleeting. The token crashed 98% over the next nine minutes, according to DEX Screener. The price drop came as a result of a series of quick sales by several addresses, Bubblemaps told Decrypt.

There have been no social media posts from Ronaldo regarding any plans for an official token, outside of the released Binance NFTs.

The launch follows Ye, formerly Kanye West, launching his own official token after half a year of speculation. YZY hit a $411.23 million market cap an hour after it was announced, per DEX Screener, before plummeting 74% to $105 million over the next 24 hours.

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width=”100%”
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Since then, the YZY Money X account has started to claim that the project will be releasing a crypto payments processor as well as a debit card. The project’s account also teased that YZY and USDC payments would be accepted in the Yeezy digital clothing store. Despite this, the token has continued to sag to a $75 million market cap.

Ye had been flirting with the possibility of releasing a token for half a year, which spawned two meme coin communities that were adamant he would soon endorse their project. On YZY’s launch, the communities had to come to terms with the likelihood that their dream wouldn’t come to fruition.

“Yo WTF is going on? Are we still alive?” one user wrote in the token’s Telegram group. “They emotionally harvested us for six months. Bye,” responded.

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DeFi Community On Alert Following Hypervault’s $3.6 Million Suspected Rug Pull

DeFi Protocol HyperVault Pulls The Rug

Crypto Still The Wild West?

Cristiano Ronaldo Meme Coin Rumors Fuel $143 Million CR7 ‘Rug Pull’

In brief

Daily Debrief Newsletter