[DigitalToday reporter Jinju Hong (홍진주)] More than 90 percent of new cryptocurrencies launched since 2024 with market capitalisations exceeding $100 million have failed to recover their prices at the time of listing, data showed. Only a handful maintained their prices after the token generation event (TGE), with Hyperliquid (HYPE) cited as a representative exception.

CoinPost, a blockchain media outlet, reported on July 22 that CryptoRank, a cryptocurrency analytics platform, analysed 113 tokens with market capitalisations of at least $100 million launched from 2024 to 2026. It said only 8, or 7.1 percent, traded above their TGE prices.

The remaining 105 tokens all traded below their TGE prices. The median return for all tokens was calculated at -95.7 percent. That means most cases showed that even projects with market capitalisations above $100 million failed to defend their prices after listing.

Only a few projects recorded gains above their listing prices. Hyperliquid rose 1,519 percent from its TGE, posting the highest return. Ondo Finance (ONDO) rose 101.4 percent, EverValueCoin (EVA) gained 20.3 percent and Midnight Network (NIGHT) added 16.5 percent. CryptoRank analysed that most new tokens failed to hold prices formed immediately after listing and then fell sharply over a long period. It assessed that projects that maintained strength even after the TGE were extremely exceptional cases.

Airdrop investment performance showed a similar trend. CryptoRank compared returns for major projects on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, along with the question, "Should you sell airdrop tokens right after the TGE?"

The most notable case was Hyperliquid. Tokens initially allocated worth about $130 have now grown to about $4,700 in value, delivering a return of roughly 35 times.

Most other major projects saw steep value declines. Uniswap (UNI) rose only slightly from $1,200 to $1,300, while Aptos (APT) fell from $1,100 to $90, Optimism (OP) dropped from $380 to $25, and Arbitrum (ARB) declined from $1,300 to $85. ApeCoin (APE) plunged from $80,000 to $1,500, Starknet fell from $1,000 to $15, and dYdX shrank from $3,700 to $37.

CryptoRank assessed Hyperliquid as effectively the only case that delivered meaningful returns to long-term holders.

The results also align with findings from other research groups. Crypto research firm Memento Research analysed that, among 118 tokens launched in 2025, the fully diluted valuation (FDV) of 100, or 84.7 percent, fell below their levels at listing. It calculated that the median FDV fell 71 percent from the TGE and the median market capitalisation declined 67 percent.

Delphi Digital also said in its "State of the Token Market" report released in June that the average token price spent about 70 percent of the post-listing period below its TGE price. It also found that, in an analysis of 652 tokens listed on centralised exchanges since 2025, the median return was -82 percent and more than half lost more than 80 percent of their value after listing.

Delphi Digital pointed to token issuance structures, phased lockup release schedules and structural limits in value-return mechanisms as drivers of the phenomenon. It analysed that many projects backed by venture capital (VC) repeat a pattern in which prices surge immediately after listing and then decline for an extended period, creating a structure in which retail investors bear long-term losses while early investors and internal project insiders find it relatively easier to earn higher returns.

As a result, it has been reaffirmed that it is difficult to judge long-term performance in new token investing based only on market capitalisation or initial price jumps. Experts advised that when evaluating airdrops or newly listed tokens, investors need to examine post-spike price holding power along with token circulation structures and lockup schedules.