Squid Game Releases Season 2 – Fake Tokens Flood the Market Again

With the release of the second season of Netflix's hit show Squid Game on December 26, a flood of crypto tokens inspired by the series has surged onto the market.

However, caution is advised as many of these tokens are suspected to be scams or “rug pulls.”

Squid Game follows a group of financially desperate contestants who risk their lives in a deadly competition for a substantial cash prize. As the show gained renewed attention, tokens bearing the same name quickly emerged on various crypto exchanges. While the characters in the show stand to win big, those investing in these new Squid Game tokens may face much less favorable odds.

Blockchain security firm PeckShield issued a warning on December 27, identifying several Squid Game tokens as fraudulent. They highlighted a specific token on the Base network, where the creator holds the majority of the supply, and the token’s value plummeted by 99% soon after its launch. Similar suspicious tokens have also appeared on the Solana network. A Twitter account promoting a Squid Game-themed token raised red flags, with a community member noting that the top token holders shared identical addresses, suggesting a coordinated effort to potentially “dump” the tokens once others purchase them.

This is not the first time Squid Game has been linked to dubious crypto projects. In 2021, the initial season of the show inspired a token that saw a dramatic price increase of over 45,000%. However, this spike was followed by suspicions of foul play, as many users found themselves unable to sell their tokens on decentralized exchanges, leading to accusations of a “rug pull.” At the time, CoinMarketCap issued a warning, confirming that transactions were blocked on PancakeSwap, the platform hosting the token.