Imagine a crypto project promising a technological revolution, claiming to handle 480,000 transactions per second, led by a team of JP Morgan experts, and raising over $15 million in funding... but suddenly it goes bankrupt and people eventually discover that everything was "illusionary", and investors lost their money, while the team walked away with millions in profits? This is simply the story of Kadena, the project that went from "the hope of crypto" to the biggest scam scandal in 2025!
The dazzling start and attractive promises
Kadena launched in 2019, marketing itself as a revolutionary blockchain combining security and super speed (they boasted about 480,000 transactions per second), with fake partnerships with major institutions, and its core team was from the largest banks in the world. This talk attracted thousands of investors and pushed the currency price up, reaching a market peak of $27 in November 2021. But the reality was completely different!
Exposure: false numbers and 'laughable' revenues!
The last month before the closure, the total profits of the project were only $27!
Most partnerships and advertisements were just noise to convince investors.
The blockchain was actually 'empty' of users and wallets (numbers on paper only).
Scandals and shocking truths from inside Kadena
The founder is being sued by his family: he borrowed money from them to finance the project and then pretended not to know them after the currency surged!
Sell at the peak: the core team, especially Francesco Melpignano, withdrew millions of KDA coins and sold them at peak price (estimates: between 20 to 80 million dollars!).
Scamming marketing agencies: the management hired a famous agency and lied to them about payment because they were selling tokens for cash 'and knew the project was dead.'
Fake companies and clubs: It was discovered that the owner of the Kaddex site is the same as the owner of a golf club in Italy owned by the family of the Kadena Eco president.
Formal dismissal: after the community attack, the dismissal of Francesco Melpignano was announced but it later turned out that he continued to receive a salary through a shell company with no work!
Legal hiding: their lawsuits had no effect because everyone is hiding behind shell companies (LLCs) and aliases.
The CEO and president let things run because they became wealthy and completely disappeared after selling the coins at the peak.
Quick analysis: why did all this happen?
The investment was in 'media hype' (JP Morgan team) and not in a real product.
They exploited the greed of fear of missing out (FOMO) among investors.
The team controls most of the stock and can easily disavow with a lack of transparency.
No actual source of income... and all revenues were just 'dreams'.
Practical lessons to protect yourself from crypto scams
Do not believe any 'fantastic' promises about performance and network speed without practical evidence.
Always look for real revenues: Are there actual fees being used? Is the project earning from a source other than just token sales?
Check the team's history — look for lawsuits or problems or previous failed projects.
Monitor the transaction history of main wallets... massive selling at peak is often a huge alarm bell.
Beware of projects registered in unknown states or countries or with shell companies.
Join a strong community and always participate in research before any investment decision.
Conclusion and warning
The collapse of Kadena is not just a lesson for investors, but a warning to anyone entering the crypto field without research. Even the strongest testimonials are not guarantees, and big numbers are not always the truth. If you want to invest in crypto, you must research yourself and verify every point, and not rely solely on promises or the reputation of the team!