Memecoins
Russian Central Bank Warns Against Scammers Using Memecoins, Tap-to-Earn Games as Weapons
The Bank of Russia has issued a public warning, saying bad actors are increasingly using memecoins and tap-to-earn games to defraud their victims.
RussiaThe central bank released a report Monday detailing a rapid increase in financial scams in the first half of 2024, highlighting a significant increase in fraudulent activity related to memecoins and tap-to-earn games.
According to the document, the central bank found that more than 3,490 entities in the first six months of 2024 exhibited characteristics of Ponzi schemes, which represents a 43% increase compared to the same period in 2023.
A significant portion of these Ponzi schemes have been discovered in the economic gaming sector such as tap-to-earn, which are token-based mobile applications that have gained popularity after TelegramThe founder of Pavel Durov began actively promote The Bank of Russia did not specify any specific plans, but stressed that scammers are exploiting “viral media trends” to lure victims.
Capitalizing on the “hype”
“They [scammers] “Illegal projects were exploited by viral media to promote their products, such as the hype around clicker games and memecoins. More than 14% of illegal projects were exploited in the form of economic games,” the Bank of Russia noted.
The central bank also observed an increase in “mixed” schemes, which offer users supposed investment opportunities as well as trading in various assets, including currency pairs and cryptocurrencies. The report said 59% of the alleged Ponzi schemes accepted contributions in cryptocurrencies, while 36% used foreign payment services.
“Tap to Earn” games have gained popularity across Eurasia, allowing users to earn digital points – with the promise of converting them into real-world tokens – by performing simple actions such as tapping the screen multiple times. These games have become very popular due to their low barriers to entry and the appeal of earning rewards with minimal effort.
Telegram-based Notcoin (NOT) was the originator of this trend, generating considerable interest thanks to its viral marketing and gamified winning strategies. Subsequently, other tap-to-earn games also emerged, but mainly on Telegram. The latest, Hamster Kombat (HMSTR), has even come under scrutiny from a Russian lawmaker who called that these apps are banned in Russia due to scam concerns.