Crypto Platform Pump.fun Slammed As ‘Disease’—Critics Say It ‘Stole’ $741 Million
A growing wave of criticism is sweeping over Pump.fun, the Solana-based memecoin launchpad that’s pulled in about $741 million from users’ trades.
According to blockchain data, the platform has been selling off its fee earnings in huge chunks since May 2024. Traders now wonder whether the site is built to serve them or simply to line its own pockets.
Fee Extraction Scale
According to analytics from LookOnChain, Pump.fun has sold around 4.1 million SOL tokens, raking in roughly $741 million at an average price of $180 each. It sent about 3.84 million SOL—worth nearly $699 million—to Kraken exchange.
Another 264,373 SOL went for $41.64 million USDC. Those moves show just how much value the platform can pull out of its user base in a matter of months.
User Losses Vs Platform Gains
Based on reports, 13.55 million wallets have ever traded on Pump.fun. Yet only 293 of those have made over $1 million. At the other end, almost 100% of traders never see profits above $10,000.
Pump Fun stole $741M in fees from crypto users 🚨
We estimate over $20B has been extracted by scams alone
The application is a disease responsible for mass killings and suicides on livestream
-Deleting pump fun from the internet will be a net positive for the entire ecosystem https://t.co/e3YjuNoKcj
— Crypto Bitlord (@crypto_bitlord7) June 17, 2025
Meanwhile, Pump.fun has handled more than $66 billion in trading volume since its January 2024 launch and is cranking out about 27,305 new tokens every single day.
It charges a 0.25% fee on every trade and recently added a 0.05% revenue share for token creators. That tweak effectively rewards developers who dump tokens fast and vanish once they’ve banked their cut.
Image: CryptoFX/Shutterstock
Livestream Worries
The platform’s live‑streaming feature has sparked the worst kind of headlines. Pump.fun paused livestreams in November 2024 after users aired extreme content meant to hype token prices.
But in April 2025 it quietly turned streaming back on for 5% of its users, promising better moderation that hasn’t shown up yet.
Hey @pumpdotfun there is currently someone using your livestreams to threaten to hang themselves if the coin does not reach a set marketcap.
Absolutely heinous and It needs to come down + see if you can get them help.
Shut down the livestream feature. This is out of control.
— Beau (@beausecurity) November 25, 2024
Crypto influencer Crypto Bitlord has called Pump.fun a “disease responsible for mass killings and suicides on livestream,” and he claims more than $20 billion has been lost to scams on the site.
He’s even urged that Pump.fun be wiped off the internet for the good of the crypto community.
Regulatory Roadblocks
Pressure is building from all sides. X suspended Pump.fun’s official account and co‑founder Alon Cohen’s profile without spelling out why.
Some say it’s due to API misuse or potential securities law breaches. A lawsuit already accuses the platform of selling unregistered securities in the guise of meme tokens.
Plans for a $1 billion token sale at a $4 billion valuation now hang in the balance. With regulators circling and social media visibility gone, Pump.fun’s next moves will be critical—for both the business and the traders who’ve staked their funds on its promises.
Featured image from CSIRO, chart from TradingView
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