Crypto's Wild West: High-Risk Projects Flood Press Releases, Raising Market Manipulation Concerns
A recent comprehensive analysis of over 2,893 cryptocurrency press releases, spanning from June to November 2025, reveals a concerning trend: more than six out of ten releases originated from projects identified as either high-risk or outright scams. This finding, highlighted by a communications firm specializing in the crypto space, underscores the potential for these announcements to bypass journalistic oversight and potentially manipulate market sentiment. The analysis, conducted by Chainstory, a crypto communications company, categorized issuers based on their risk profile and evaluated the content of their press releases for indicators of questionable activity. The data indicates a significant imbalance in the crypto press release landscape, with high-risk projects dominating the volume of published announcements.
The report’s findings indicate that a substantial 62.5% of the analyzed press releases were associated with activities deemed high-risk or indicative of scams. Notably, product or feature updates and announcements related to trading or token listings accounted for the majority of these releases, representing 74% of the total. Red flags frequently identified in these high-risk releases included promises of unrealistically high yields and the use of duplicated website content. Chainstory’s co-founder emphasized that the classification of a project as high risk is not based on incomplete data alone, but rather on the identification of multiple independent warning signs. This suggests a deliberate strategy by problematic projects to disseminate information through press releases, exploiting the format’s ability to reach a wide audience with minimal editorial filtering.
The intended purpose of press releases is to disseminate significant information to the public. However, when utilized as a low-cost marketing mechanism, they can overwhelm the market with noise, overshadowing legitimate news and, in certain instances, actively attempting to influence token prices. The data reveals a stark contrast in press release activity between projects categorized as high risk and those considered low risk. High-risk projects accounted for 35.6% of all releases, while scams represented another 26.9%. In contrast, low-risk projects contributed only 27% to the analyzed volume. This disparity suggests that more reputable projects often prioritize organic media coverage or more targeted communication strategies over widespread press release distribution.
A key tactic employed by higher-risk projects is the strategy of "shotgun distribution," where the same press release is disseminated across numerous online platforms and syndication services. This approach aims to maximize visibility, but it also often leads to the suppression of duplicate content by search engines. While this strategy can generate significant visibility, it can also obfuscate the origin and legitimacy of the information being shared. The ease with which press releases can be distributed and the limited gatekeeping mechanisms within the crypto ecosystem create an environment where risky projects can readily propagate their narratives.
Concerns regarding market manipulation have a historical precedent in traditional finance, with numerous enforcement cases linking malicious press releases and promotional campaigns to artificial price movements. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has frequently identified press releases as a primary channel for disseminating misleading claims in pump-and-dump schemes. Analysis of SEC cases from 2002 to 2015 revealed that press releases were present in 73.3% of instances. The crypto market exhibits a similar pattern, with tokens experiencing sudden price increases following a series of press releases announcing partnerships or future developments that often fail to materialize beyond the initial announcement.
Instances of outright deception have also been observed. A notable example occurred in 2021 when a false press release falsely claimed that retail giant Walmart had begun accepting Litecoin, resulting in a significant price surge for the cryptocurrency before the claim was debunked. More recently, a platform masquerading as the USDC stablecoin issuer Circle utilized a deceptive press release on Christmas Eve 2025 to promote a fake platform, prompting users to connect their crypto wallets. This incident highlights the potential for malicious actors to exploit the press release format to deceive unsuspecting users.
Beyond one-off scams, press releases have also been utilized to gradually build a false sense of legitimacy. The case of defunct crypto exchange JPEX, which issued a partnership press release in July 2023 and subsequently faced warnings from Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission regarding its lack of licensing, exemplifies this tactic. JPEX later became the subject of a major crypto fraud case in Hong Kong. This pattern suggests that the volume of press releases, when heavily skewed towards high-risk projects, can obscure the true nature of these entities and create a misleading impression of credibility.
While promotion and disclosure are standard business practices, the current prevalence of high-risk projects utilizing press releases as a primary communication tool raises serious concerns. The ease of distribution and limited scrutiny surrounding these announcements mean that volume no longer serves as a reliable indicator of credibility. Instead, it reflects the willingness of potentially problematic projects to seek attention, regardless of their legitimacy. Ultimately, the issue lies not with the format of press releases themselves, but with the current environment that allows for their easy exploitation alongside insufficient oversight and frictionless distribution channels.
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