Fraud or simply one other influencer-led meme coin gone unhealthy? That’s the painful query buyers are dealing with within the aftermath of the HAWK meme coin two days in the past.
However did Haliey Welch and her staff pull a traditional rug pull, or was this merely the impression of FUD hitting a unstable meme coin?
Both approach, the HAWK story is one other lesson in the way to keep away from crypto scams, whereas Flockerz (FLOCK) exhibits the best way ahead for well-researched meme coin initiatives.
A Meme Coin Match for a Queen
Haliey Welch, well known because the ‘Hawk Tuah Woman,’ turned an web superstar in 2024. She’s change into a big crypto supporter, shopping for DOGE and usually turning into a meme coin fan.
So it wasn’t a shock when the self-proclaimed ‘Queen of Memes’ made plans to launch her personal meme coin.
Dubbed HAWK, the token launched on December 4, 2024, through the Solana blockchain via OverHere.
HAWK Collapses Spectacularly
The cryptocurrency skilled an preliminary surge, reaching a market capitalization of $500M, however swiftly plummeted by over 95% underneath regular promoting stress.
Finally, the market cap stabilized and at the moment sits at $31M, in keeping with CoinMarketCap.
What occurred?
This speedy decline led to allegations of a ‘pump-and-dump’ scheme, the place insiders inflate an asset’s worth via promotion after which unload holdings for revenue, leaving different buyers with losses.
Welch denied these claims, stating on social media that her staff hadn’t offered any tokens and had applied excessive preliminary charges to discourage early merchants from manipulating the launch.
Most buyers discovered these claims questionable, at greatest. Blockchain explorers demonstrated enormous concentrations of tokens being held in after which offered from a small variety of wallets. Information from Bubblemaps.io exhibits simply how important the concentrations had been, with one pockets controlling over 15% of the provision.
As soon as the promoting started, token costs crashed, and the underside fell out of the spectacular market cap.
And it didn’t take lengthy for buyers to report important monetary losses, with some claiming to have invested life financial savings or youngsters’s faculty funds.
The incident raised questions on Welch’s credibility.
HAWK Buyers Probably New to Crypto
Analysts reminiscent of Coffeezilla on YouTube identified that lots of Welch’s followers and potential HAWK buyers had been possible new to crypto. They might not have realized the significance of doing analysis as a substitute of simply following the recommendation of a younger, newly-famous influencer.
Among the many crimson flags for the HAWK token:
The top consequence was {that a} fifth of the overall tokens had been out there to be offered instantly, and solely 3% of tokens had been allotted to the general public. The entire course of lacked the required transparency.
Speak on-line shortly turned to fraud and authorized prosecution.
Meme Coin Buyers: Search for Properly-Vetted Initiatives
The launch of Haliey Welch’s HAWK meme coin resulted in a short valuation peak adopted by a pointy decline, resulting in investor losses and accusations of fraudulent exercise, which Welch disputes.
It additionally highlights how vital it’s for buyers to decide on initiatives with as a lot information as potential. For initiatives like Flockerz, meaning roadmaps, neighborhood governance, information on tokenomics, and particulars on staking, vesting intervals, and extra.
In crypto, information is energy. Haliey Welch could not have finished her personal analysis – or perhaps she did. Both approach, the HAWK launch shortly fell right into a rug pull.
Don’t fall for the following HAWK. When investing in meme cash, do your personal analysis to discover the most effective upcoming initiatives.
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