Pump.fun Just Ghosted Investors After Promising $600 Million — Is It Over?

Pump.fun has hit a roadblock with its planned $600 million PUMP token sale scheduled for July 12, 2025, which has been put on hold after cryptocurrency exchange Gate.io removed the listing page for the sale. 

As of now, neither Pump.fun nor Gate.io has provided official clarification, leaving investors uncertain and leading to criticism from the crypto community.

Pump.fun Token Sale Structure and Early Expectations

Pump.fun, launched in January 2024, has grossed between $655 million and $750 million in revenue from transaction fees, capitalizing on the meme coin surge. 

The platform announced a $600 million token sale of its PUMP token, where 150 billion tokens at $0.004 USDT each will be sold, representing 15% of a 1 trillion total token supply, valuing the project at a fully diluted $4 billion. 

The sale, scheduled to begin on July 12, 2025, at 10 AM ET and run for three days on Gate.io, marked Pump.fun’s first public token offering.

The announcement of the launch, which was initially planned for June 2025, generated a buzz, with traders estimating a $4 billion valuation.

Earlier reports had speculated a $1 billion raise, later adjusted to $600 million. 

Despite the success of Pump.fun, a new report shows a 75% drop in volume of trades and an 86–92% fall in daily revenues, while rivals like LetsBonk surpass it in token launches and costs, as reported by Ecoinimist.

Gate.io Deletes Pump.fun’s $600M Listing

On July 7, 2025, Gate.io published the sale’s information, confirming the $600 million target. However, as of July 8, 2025, the page had been removed, with a 404 error on both the English- and Chinese-language platforms of the site. 

The Gate.io Pump.fun token sale page (Source: Gate.io)

Gate.io’s support team stated, “Following negotiations between Gate and the project, Gate has removed Pump.fun Pre-Market OTC,” without specifying a resumption date. Pump.fun’s website and X account have provided no updates either, leaving the sale’s status and investors in the dark.

The delisting has been under speculation due to fears of regulatory concerns, internal disagreements, or a change in strategy. 

The slowing of the meme coin market, where merely 69 tokens have graduated recently against 1,168 on Jan. 22, 2025, and only 97,000 of 7 million tokens are still liquid at over $1,000, provides context to the suspension of the token sale.

Community reaction has been increasing, with figures like Noones App CEO Ray Youssef describing the sale’s optics as poor, likening it to “a scandalous president running for office.” 

Many anticipated an airdrop, similar to Hyperliquid’s, given Pump.fun’s substantial revenue. The Block’s Research Director Steven Zheng noted that an airdrop remains a possibility. While some community members have labeled the sale a “scam,” a sign of their growing distrust.

Relaunch or Total Collapse?

As of July 9, 2025, the PUMP token sale’s fate remains unclear. The silence from Pump.fun and Gate.io has frustrated investors, with no clarity on whether the sale will resume on another exchange or with revised terms. 

Polymarket’s 83% probability of a token launch by July 31, shows some optimism, but doubt remains. The failed token launch is one of the challenges faced while managing community expectations in a weakening meme coin market. 

Whether the platform opts for a relaunched sale or an airdrop will likely determine its standing in the volatile crypto sector. For now, the $600 million sale remains on hold, a testament to the unpredictability of the crypto space.