Justin Sun’s graveyard of abandoned crypto projects

Justin Sun is a prolific crypto entrepreneur who, like many of his fellow business-building billionaires, has never been afraid to throw himself headfirst into new ventures with a frenetic pace and enthusiasm. While some of his projects, such as TRON, have achieved success with a market capitalization of approximately $28 billion (as per CoinGecko), other ventures have failed or have been nearly forgotten.

USDD, a stablecoin launched as a Terra knockoff with promises of a high 30% yield, was initially designed to be integrated into TRON's ecosystem. However, this plan was abandoned, and USDD evolved into a MakerDAO knockoff without consulting the DAO meant to govern it. Today, USDD's market capitalization has fallen dramatically, from a peak of $790 million to around $469 million, according to CoinGecko and the USDD website.

When “Ethereum 2.0” was launched, Sun-backed EthereumFair was one of the forks maintaining the proof-of-work algorithm. Despite initial support from Sun, the project rebranded to Gougoubi Labs, which now seems to focus on creating a Dogecoin alternative on the BNB Chain. The original EthereumFair handle has been replaced, and DisChain has also rebranded itself as EthereumFair.

Justin Sun acquired BitTorrent and launched the BitTorrent token (BTT) with ambitious goals, including token-based economies for networking and storage. Despite initial buzz, many advertised decentralized apps (dApps) like BitTorrent File System show features as "coming soon." Some ventures, such as DLive, gained attention but were later controversial due to their association with extremist fundraising during the January 6 Capitol riots. BTT's market capitalization has dropped from $2 billion to $466 million.

Staked USDT (stUSDT) was introduced to pay yields on tether through investments in U.S. treasuries, purportedly governed by the RWA DAO. However, the governance structure seems absent, and the project has shifted focus to lending via AAVE. Its market capitalization has seen a catastrophic fall, from $440 million to just $60 million, as per CoinMarketCap.

Sun ambitiously promised TRON would provide an AI-oriented payment framework, linking AI systems like ChatGPT with decentralized storage and smart contracts. Related projects, such as WINkLink and AINFT, have failed to deliver on their promises. Tools like "SunGenX" for memecoins and "Banana King AI" for generating digital artwork have garnered little traction. Moreover, SunLumi, a rebrand of APENFT, has minimal user engagement, with posts receiving zero likes and followers.

TrueUSD (TUSD) is a stablecoin with deep ties to Sun, though he denies ownership. The token's reserves are surrounded by legal disputes, and its market capitalization has plummeted from $3.5 billion to under $500 million. Similarly, USDJ, a token by Sun linked to JustLend, has been effectively sunset but still trades above $1 due to limited supply, far below its peak market capitalization of $310 million.

In 2024, Sun bizarrely encouraged an exchange he owns to list a token called Neiro, described as the "sister of $DOGE." Despite its ambitious goal of fostering community-driven movements, its market capitalization collapsed from $1 billion to $71 million, and trading activity remains constrained.

Peiwo, a dating app created by Sun, featured live audio chats that critics described as bordering on “aural pornography,” with users encountering explicit content. Eventually, the app was removed from Google Play and Apple App Store for violating socialist values.