Stop aping — a 2-minute block explorer check tells you if LP is actually locked or burned
- Before aping: a green “LP Locked” badge means nothing until you verify the LP token holder on the block explorer.
- Burned = LP sits at the dead address. Locked = a contract holds it, with an unlock timestamp.
- LP in a random wallet/EOA = dev can pull it anytime, no matter what the site claims.
- On BigPump, graduation mints LP directly to the dead address, closing that specific exit vector.
Last week I almost aped a token because the site had a green “LP Locked” badge. Two minutes on the block explorer: LP tokens sitting in a fresh wallet with no lock contract. I closed the tab.
The problem: most people confuse locked with burned, and most sites exploit exactly that. If you only remember one thing:
A “liquidity locked” badge is not evidence. The LP token holder on the block explorer is the evidence.
Locked and burned are not the same thing
When you buy a token on a DEX, your trade goes into a liquidity pool. The project receives LP tokens that represent that pool share. What happens to those LP tokens decides whether the liquidity can be yanked later.
- Burned: LP tokens sit at the dead address. Nobody can move them. Liquidity stays.
- Locked: a contract holds the LP tokens, with an unlock date. Before that date, they can’t be pulled. After it, they can.
- Dev wallet / random EOA: a fresh wallet with no lock contract. The dev can remove liquidity any time, whatever the site says.
The 2-minute check
- Open the token's pool or trading pair on the chain's block explorer.
- Find the LP token contract and open its holders.
- Check the top holder's address.
- Dead address = burned. Contract with unlock timestamp = locked. Random EOA = run.
Quick rule
- If the LP holder is a random wallet, the “locked” badge means zero.
- If the LP holder is a dead address, no lock is needed—it's already permanent.
- If it's locked, always check the unlock date.
On BigPump, graduation mints LP directly to the dead address, so that specific exit vector is closed before the token starts trading.
Disclaimer: memecoins are extremely volatile and most go to zero. This article is not financial advice. Do your own research and only spend what you can afford to lose.