According to @LexSokolin, parts of the crypto industry are inflating followers, users, trading volume, accounts, stablecoin supply, engagement, and TVL, and he urges builders to stop running “fraud chains” and build real products (source: Lex Sokolin on X, Nov 29, 2025). For traders, documented cases of fake exchange volume and wash trading can distort price discovery and liquidity, making headline metrics unreliable for execution and valuation (source: Bitwise Asset Management presentation to the U.S. SEC on reported Bitcoin spot volume quality, 2019; IOSCO Policy Recommendations for Crypto-Asset Markets, 2023). Practical checks include cross-validating reported exchange volumes with independent market data, monitoring on-chain stablecoin net issuance and active addresses rather than only headline supply, and verifying TVL using unique depositor counts and contract-level audits before relying on it for investment theses (source: Kaiko Research on market quality and volume integrity, 2023; Chainalysis Crypto Crime Report 2024; IOSCO DeFi analytical work, 2023). Positioning implications include reducing position size or widening slippage assumptions on tokens whose activity is heavily incentive-driven or where organic on-chain flows are weak relative to reported metrics (source: Chainalysis Crypto Crime Report 2024; Kaiko Research on market quality, 2023).