rug pull
/rʌɡ pʊl/
Very CommonWhen crypto or NFT developers hype a project, collect investor money, then vanish with the funds.
Can describe a soft rug (team quietly abandons the project) or a hard rug (instant withdrawal, website gone, socials deleted). Also used sarcastically outside crypto for any sudden betrayal.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | dev deleted twitter and discord at 2am, we got rug pulled | The developers disappeared suddenly, confirming the project was a fraud. | x, 2022 |
| 02 | anon team, no audit, no vesting period. this is a rug pull waiting to happen | Multiple warning signs suggest the project is designed to defraud investors. | reddit, 2023 |
| 03 | they soft rugged, just stopped posting and left the chart to die | The developers quietly abandoned the project without a dramatic withdrawal. | x, 2023 |
| 04 | my group project partner literally rug pulled us the night before it was due | Someone bailed on shared responsibilities at the worst possible moment. | tiktok, 2024 |
Use it when
- Crypto or NFT developers abandon a project after raising funds.
- A new coin's liquidity is suddenly withdrawn by the team.
- Someone built community trust and then suddenly ghosted or absconded.
- Sarcastically, when any plan suddenly falls apart because someone bailed.
Do not use it when
- The project failed naturally without the team intending to defraud.
- The fraud involved a fake relationship rather than a project launch.Use “pig-butchering” instead.
Variations and related forms
Rug pull vs Ponzi scheme
rug pull
A rug pull is a one-time exit scam where developers take the money and disappear.
VS
ponzi-scheme
A Ponzi scheme sustains itself by using new investor money to pay earlier investors, often running for months or years.
Origin and context
From the phrase 'pulling the rug out from under someone.' Entered crypto slang around 2020 to 2021 with the rise of DeFi and the explosion of low-quality token launches on decentralized exchanges.
- First seen
- 2020
- Confidence
- medium
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/rug-pull-cryptoUpdated: 2026-08-28License: CC BY 4.0