Evolution
| Launched | January 2014 |
|---|---|
| Closed | March 2015 |
| Founder(s) | Operators known as "Verto" and "Kimble" |
| Network | Tor hidden service (.onion) |
| Currency | Bitcoin |
| Est. revenue | About 12 million dollars lost |
| Peak size | Largest market at the time |
Evolution became the dominant darknet market after Silk Road's fall — and then vanished overnight in March 2015 with an estimated 12 million dollars of user funds, in the most notorious exit scam in darknet history.
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History
Launched in January 2014, Evolution grew quickly on the strength of a polished interface, responsive administration and aggressive fee discounts. By early 2015 it had displaced its main rival, Agora, as the largest market.
Operation
Everything appeared healthy: listings, reviews and withdrawals worked normally. That is the signature of a planned exit scam. On 18 March 2015 the site went offline and its Bitcoin wallets were emptied. The operators, known only as "Verto" and "Kimble," have never been publicly identified.
Impact
The collapse destroyed billions in stored value almost overnight and shattered user confidence in centralized escrow. It became the standard example taught to explain why funds should not be left on a market.
Legacy
Evolution defined the modern meaning of "exit scam." It proved that even a market users trusted could be a honey trap, and it directly motivated the shift to multi-signature (multi-sig) escrow that modern markets rely on.