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From +650% to Minus 40%. Winners and Losers of the Crypto Market in April
We explain which tokens from the top 100 recorded significant gains and losses in April, as well as the factors that accompanied this performance.
Charts of most major cryptocurrencies showed growth over the last 30 days. However, some crypto assets moved against the market trend, declining by dozens of percentage points. From April 1 to April 30, the prices of Bitcoin ($BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) increased by 13% and 10%, reaching $76,000 and $2,260 respectively.
Below is a regular selection of cryptocurrencies whose prices changed significantly over the last 30 days as of May 1, according to CoinMarketCap data. The ranking is based on percentage gains and losses over the previous 30 days (using publicly available data), while the crypto assets are taken from CoinMarketCap’s list of the top 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization.
The growth of nearly every coin was accompanied to some extent by either positive or negative news sentiment, although it is important to remember that prices are influenced by numerous market factors.
Top Gainers
EdgeX (EDGE)
30‑day growth as of May 1: 130%
EdgeX is a perpetual DEX trading platform (a decentralized perpetual futures exchange), belonging to the same category as Hyperliquid and Aster. The project operates using technical infrastructure developed by contributors to Arbitrum, one of the largest Layer‑2 blockchain networks. Over the last 30 days, futures trading volume on the exchange reached nearly $69 billion, surpassing Aster ($63 billion) but trailing Hyperliquid ($195 billion).
A potential catalyst for the asset’s price growth in April was the project team’s token buyback program, estimated at around $700,000 per day. The initiative, launched at the end of March, has already enabled the project to repurchase more than $21 million worth of tokens.
The token began trading only in late March at approximately $0.4, yet it quickly entered the list of the market’s fastest‑growing assets and reached a peak of $1.51 in late April. At the time of writing, the token had corrected to around $1.2.
Humanity Protocol (H)
30‑day growth as of May 1: 120%
Humanity Protocol is a decentralized identity network designed to verify internet users through biometric data. Its core innovation is the Proof‑of‑Humanity (PoH) protocol, which uses palm vein recognition. Scanning is processed locally, while zero‑knowledge proofs (ZK‑proofs) allow the network to confirm identity without granting third parties access to biometric data.
The asset’s price increase in April was not associated with any major events. The token itself is relatively new to the market — the project’s mainnet launched in mid‑2025, while the token began trading later that year at approximately $0.04.
Shortly after launch, the project announced several institutional partnerships, including integration with Fireblocks for institutional custody of H and collaboration with Mastercard to provide secure access to financial services through Human ID, a ZK‑based identity verification technology. At the time of writing, the token trades around $0.17, roughly 55% below its October 2025 peak of $0.39.
Terra Classic ($LUNC)
30‑day growth as of May 1: 100%
Terra Classic is the original Terra blockchain protocol, renamed Terra Classic following the collapse of the ecosystem in May 2022. The network is now community‑governed, while the $LUNC token is used for staking, fee payments, and recovery efforts through token‑burning mechanisms.
The price growth in April was not accompanied by technical upgrades, announcements, or other positive developments. From late 2024 through early April 2026, $LUNC remained in a downward trend, falling from a local high of $0.00016 in 2024 to approximately $0.000036 by April this year.
One of the few factors that may have attracted renewed interest is the broader crypto‑market trend of token burning and buybacks. $LUNC is among the projects that remove tokens from circulation daily through burning. The process can be tracked through the dedicated Luncmetrics platform.
Biggest Decliners
Although most major crypto assets increased in value over the 30‑day period, several experienced declines of dozens of percentage points, including drops to all‑time lows.
World Liberty Financial ($WLFI)
30‑day decline as of May 1: 40%
World Liberty Financial (WLF) was launched with the involvement of the family of U.S. President Donald Trump. In official WLF documents, Trump is listed as the project’s “Chief Advocate.” His sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr. serve as Web3 ambassadors, while Barron carries the title of DeFi visionary.
The project was initially planned as a lending protocol but later shifted toward speculative crypto trading and the issuance of its native token, $WLFI. The project is also the issuer of the USD1 stablecoin, which ranks sixth among the largest stablecoins with a market capitalization of $4.45 billion.
The asset’s decline in April was accompanied by a series of controversial management decisions. On April 9, World Liberty Financial CTO Cory Kaplan used $WLFI reserves as collateral to secure $75 million in stablecoins through the Dolomite platform, of which he is also a co‑founder. After disclosure of the transaction, the token fell below $0.08 for the first time, and its total decline from the September 2025 peak exceeded 80%.
Pressure intensified later in the month following a vote regarding 62 billion $WLFI tokens held by early investors. A proposal to lock these tokens for two years with gradual unlocking afterward received nearly 99.95% approval. The decision sparked criticism from investors, many of whom expected earlier liquidity after purchasing tokens beginning in October 2024. A crucial detail of the proposal is that token holders must accept the updated conditions; otherwise, their tokens remain locked indefinitely.
Many industry participants publicly criticized the project’s leadership. Tron founder Justin Sun, one of the token’s largest holders, described the initiative as one of the most absurd in DeFi history, comparing it to a scam. Sun later filed a lawsuit against the Trump‑linked platform. At the time of writing, $WLFI trades near $0.06 — its all‑time low.
Midnight ($NIGHT)
30‑day decline as of May 1: 35%
Midnight ($NIGHT) is a Cardano‑based blockchain network focused on privacy. Its infrastructure uses Zero‑Knowledge Proofs to ensure privacy for smart contracts and transactions. The native token, $NIGHT, is used for fees and governance.
The asset’s decline in April continued a structural crisis that began at launch in late 2025. Midnight released approximately 70% of its maximum token supply into circulation from the outset, creating heavy selling pressure. By the end of April, the token had lost around 86% from its all‑time high — after debuting at $0.45, it now trades around $0.031.
A primary source of selling pressure is the token distribution model, which follows a 360‑day schedule that began on December 10, 2025. Tokens unlock in tranches with randomized release dates, introducing additional supply into circulation through December 2026.
LayerZero ($ZRO)
30‑day decline as of May 1: 20%
LayerZero was one of the crypto market’s standout projects in 2023–2024, attracting significant funding to build an interoperability protocol connecting isolated blockchain networks and enabling them to exchange data and assets directly without relying on insecure bridges. The $ZRO token serves as the protocol’s governance asset, facilitating communication across multiple blockchain ecosystems.
The token’s April performance coincided with the largest DeFi exploit of 2026 — the $290 million hack of the KelpDAO bridge, which was built on LayerZero infrastructure. The attack, which occurred in mid‑April, damaged confidence not only in $ZRO but also in the security of many related protocols.
Additional pressure may have come from a scheduled token unlock worth more than $40 million at the end of April for early investors and the project team. It is often assumed, though not guaranteed, that unlocked investor tokens are quickly sold into the market to realize profits.
Low‑Liquidity Crypto Assets
Over the past seven days, the list of top gainers included not only major projects but also tokens primarily traded on second‑ and third‑tier exchanges. The fastest‑growing crypto asset in April was the Chinese memecoin $币安人生 (Binance Life), which gained 650%. Its rise began after Binance founder Changpeng Zhao announced the release of his book Freedom of Money, published in Chinese under the title Binance Life.
Image caption: Chainlink Price Dynamics (Source: Trading View)
“$币安人生 is someone’s memecoin in Chinese. I think it fits well. Very organic. I couldn’t find a better Chinese title,” Zhao wrote on X.
Another highly volatile asset in April was the memecoin Siren (SIREN), which surged 800% during the first two weeks of the month to above $2.2, before collapsing 85% within a single day. Even so, the token remains roughly 20% above its level at the beginning of the month. In March alone, the asset reportedly surged by 100% and dropped by 50% within a day at least seven times.
Traders on social media frequently suggest that such assets are subject to manipulation, as sharp price swings without clear fundamental causes are common. These tokens may temporarily appear among the top‑100 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization but often fail to remain there for long
See also: "Morgan Stanley explains five reasons why the company remains bullish on cryptocurrencies"
