E-coin Cryptocurrency: One Pump-and-Dump Crypto to Avoid

Cryptocurrency E-coin is making waves on social media after its price skyrocketed more than 4,000% in a day. I’m reading comments on Reddit and Twitter where potential investors are trying to figure out why the E-coin price soared and if this crypto is worth investing in.

Caveat emptor!

The most recent E-coin news only makes a mention of its meteoric price surge but does not delve into the specifics of this coin. Barely a few identify it as what it actually is, a “pump-and-dump” initial coin offering (ICO).

We at Profit Confidential want to make sure our readers are not getting duped into buying sham investments. This is why we are doing a series on these “PnD” coins—a colloquial term for pump-and-dump cryptocurrencies.




Consider this the second installment in the series. In our first post, we uncovered BitConnect and BitConnectX as Ponzi schemes. We identified a number of red flags that corroborated our finding. Take note that exactly one day after we posted, BitConnect was accused of running a scam and voluntarily announced a shutdown of operations.

So, coming back to the E-coin crypto, let me give you a quick introduction.

This cryptocurrency was launched two years ago in an ICO. Most early investors in this ICO met the same fate as do investors in most scam ICOs. The ICO founders made lots of promises, sold lots of coins, and then completely vanished from the face of the earth.

Cases like these are aplenty in the crypto space. In fact, one crypto enthusiast went so far as to launch a parody ICO to show the world how naive crypto investors can be. The cryptocurrency, dubbed Useless Ethereum Token (UET), made $242,218 in the ICO, even though the founder explicitly warned investors not to invest in it. (Source: “The world’s first 100% honest Ethereum ICO,” Useless Ethereum Token, last accessed February 7, 2018.)

So, investors who are considering this crypto need to take into account the following giant red flags.

Red Flag #1: This unheard-of cryptocurrency that, at the time of writing, was nowhere in the top 100, was trading in the top 20 just a day ago. The ECN coin price went from $4.25 to $207.29 in one day, before crashing back to $3.20 the very next day. That’s a classic “pump” followed by a “dump.”

Red Flag #2: The average volume in the cryptocurrency, prior to the pump, has ranged between $500.00 to $1,500. Average volume in the trailing 24 hours is a little over $70,000. That’s just enough for a single buyer to manipulate prices.

Red Flag #3: More than 99% of the trades flowed from C-CEX—a notorious cryptocurrency exchange widely accused of stealing investor money and allegedly believed to be a scam.

Red Flag #4: E-coin’s online communities (particularly on Reddit and Twitter) have been dead for two years. A Google search reveals very little about this cryptocurrency. There are no developer updates on the coin.

Red Flag #5: And finally, here’s an official confirmation. Swiss financial regulators investigated the ICO last year, discovered it to be a fraud, and halted its trading in the country. (Source: “Swiss shut down ‘fake’ E-Coin in latest cryptocurrency crackdown,” Reuters, September 19, 2017.)

Analyst Take

Before you plow your money into any coin, it’s a savvy idea to do thorough research. Don’t fall for the shills active on social media. E-coin is one cryptocurrency you need to avoid.

Don’t forget to tune back to Profit Confidential for more episodes in this series!