AICM is a low-liquidity ERC-20 token with no working platform, no team, and extreme centralization. Despite AI claims, it's a high-risk micro-cap with signs of a pump-and-dump scheme. Avoid.
ERC-20 Token: What It Is, How It Works, and Why It Powers Most Crypto
When you hold any coin on Ethereum—whether it’s UNI, LINK, or a random meme token—you’re probably holding an ERC-20 token, a standardized digital asset built on the Ethereum blockchain that follows a set of rules for how it’s created, transferred, and tracked. Also known as Ethereum token, it’s the reason you can send $5 worth of a new project to your MetaMask wallet without needing a special app for each one. Without ERC-20, every crypto project would need its own custom system to handle transfers, balances, and approvals. That would be chaos. Instead, ERC-20 gives everyone a common language. It’s like USB: plug any device in, and it just works.
Behind every ERC-20 token is a smart contract, a self-executing piece of code on Ethereum that automatically manages token supply, ownership, and transfers. This contract defines things like total supply, how many tokens each address owns, and who can send or receive them. It doesn’t need a middleman. If you send tokens to someone, the contract checks your balance, subtracts the amount, adds it to theirs, and logs the transaction—forever and publicly on the blockchain. That’s why you can track every single transfer of a token like AAVE or DAI on Etherscan. It’s all open, verifiable, and automatic.
ERC-20 tokens are the fuel for DeFi, a system of financial apps built on Ethereum that let you lend, borrow, trade, and earn interest without banks. When you stake tokens in a liquidity pool on Uniswap or borrow against your crypto on Aave, you’re interacting with ERC-20 tokens. These tokens move between wallets, contracts, and exchanges like digital cash. They’re also the reason you can store hundreds of different coins in one wallet—MetaMask, Trust Wallet, or even a hardware device like Ledger—because they all speak the same ERC-20 language.
But not all tokens are created equal. Some ERC-20 tokens are backed by real assets, like USDT or USDC. Others are governance tokens, giving you voting power in a project’s future. And then there are the ones with no team, no roadmap, and no liquidity—just a name and a contract. That’s why knowing what an ERC-20 token actually is helps you spot the real ones from the scams. If a token doesn’t show up on Etherscan with a verified contract, or if its total supply keeps changing, it’s probably not trustworthy.
You’ll also see ERC-20 tokens pop up in airdrops, exchange listings, and wallet alerts. If your wallet says "Received 150 USDT," that’s an ERC-20 token. If you’re claiming free tokens from a new DeFi project, they’re almost certainly ERC-20. Even when you trade on platforms like SpookySwap or GMX, you’re swapping ERC-20 tokens against each other. The standard is everywhere.
What you’ll find below isn’t just a list of articles—it’s a practical guide to how ERC-20 tokens live in the wild. You’ll see how they’re used in real trading, how scams fake them, how they tie into taxes and regulations, and why some tokens vanish overnight while others become pillars of DeFi. Whether you’re holding one, trading them, or just trying not to get scammed, this collection cuts through the noise and shows you what matters.