2025 Listed Tokens "Collective Bleeding": Is Buying and Holding Still Reliable in the Crypto Market?

January 29 News, the 2025 crypto market will usher in the largest wave of new token issuances in history, but returns have disappointed investors. Multiple statistics show that most newly listed tokens struggle to maintain positive gains within a year, casting unprecedented doubt on the effectiveness of the traditional crypto investment strategy of “buy and hold.”

Data agency CryptoRank summarized that, in 2025, tokens launched on different platforms have mostly experienced declines rather than gains. A leading platform listed 100 tokens within a year, of which 93 saw price drops, with a median investment return of only 0.22x; another similar platform launched 150 tokens, with 127 declining, and a median return of 0.23x; while a platform known for frequent new listings launched nearly 900 tokens, most of which also recorded losses. Even on relatively stable platforms, more than half of the new tokens failed to escape retracement. This indicates that token performance is more influenced by the overall market environment than by individual platform factors.

CryptoRank pointed out that in 2025, the number of new tokens exceeded 11 million, with many projects of varying quality, severely diluting market funds and attention. This flood of supply weakens the success probability of passive investment. Meanwhile, as of January 2026, the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies has fallen below $3 trillion, down more than $1 trillion from last year’s peak, and the industry remains under pressure.

Analyst Aporia believes that when the market was immature early on, long-term holding could share industry dividends, but now investors need to compete with funds, algorithms, and highly speculative project teams. “Holding itself is no longer equivalent to a strategy.” Former industry executive CZ also pointed out that buy and hold is not suitable for all tokens; only a few high-quality projects possess long-term value.

Against the backdrop of rapid token turnover and intensified competition, this round of data provides an important warning for investors: in the current cryptocurrency market environment, the ability to screen and manage risks may be more critical than simply holding long-term.