- Dave Portnoy slammed memecoins as “legalized Ponzi schemes” however admitted dabbling anyway, making $258K off his GREED token.
- Regardless of exploring crypto, NFTs, and Bitcoin, Portnoy says he nonetheless doesn’t totally belief or perceive the house.
- He averted launching a Barstool coin out of concern followers would lose cash, calling crypto people “hilarious” however not at all times dependable.
They name him “El Presidente,” however Dave Portnoy—Barstool Sports activities founder and all-around web wildcard—has a restrict. And that restrict? Launching his personal memecoin for the Barstool crowd. Why? Properly, he’s not trying to torch his followers’ wallets.
“I acquired into memecoins ‘trigger I assumed it’d be enjoyable to make a Barstool token,” Portnoy informed CoinDesk. “However I didn’t wanna be the rationale somebody misplaced their shirt.” Memecoins, he says, are mainly “legalized Ponzi schemes.” There’s no actual worth—simply vibes. “Get in, get out,” he provides. “Earlier than the factor crashes.” (Fast word: memecoins aren’t truly legalized within the U.S., however yeah, they’re in all places.)
Now, Portnoy hasn’t dropped a full-blown Barstool-branded token, however that doesn’t imply he’s stayed outta the pool. In February, he launched GREED—a memecoin that briefly flirted with a $41.5 million market cap. Then, in response to on-chain information from Lookonchain, he dumped all 357.92 million tokens he was holding (about 35.79% of the entire provide) in a single huge swoop. Worth tanked. He walked away with roughly $258K.
Critics lit him up, however Portnoy fired again on X (previously Twitter): “I warned individuals I might promote. Coulda made a mil however didn’t. Let it drop 75% earlier than cashing out. Some people received. Some didn’t. Solely the losers preserve whining.”
When you’ve adopted Portnoy for greater than a minute, you already know this isn’t new. He dove into inventory buying and selling throughout the COVID period, launching “Davey Day Dealer” on YouTube. Technique? Kinda questionable. However the leisure worth? Off the charts. At one level, he actually pulled Scrabble tiles, spelled out RTX, and dropped $200K on Raytheon.
Crypto? That got here subsequent. He says you possibly can’t be in finance or shares now with out crypto being a part of the dialog. Nonetheless, his monitor document with bitcoin is rocky: “Each time it rips, I’m on the incorrect facet of it,” he admits. He’s dabbled in XRP too.
Regardless of wanting a Barstool coin, Portnoy says he doesn’t actually get methods to work blockchain or crypto into his enterprise. Barstool did as soon as settle for bitcoin donations via the Barstool Fund—however of the $50 million raised to assist small companies, simply $30K got here from BTC.
“They talked a giant recreation,” he says of the crypto people who satisfied him. “Didn’t actually ship.” Then he throws in a basic Portnoy jab: “Crypto leads the league in telling you what it’s best to do… and in individuals I don’t belief.”
Nevertheless it’s not all cynicism. Portnoy has tried all of it—memecoins, NFTs (he bought one tied to his “One Chunk Pizza Opinions” channel for $138K), and naturally, Bitcoin. And whereas he’s not at all times positive what he’s doing within the crypto house, he says the individuals are what preserve him curious.
“As a lot as I travel with the crypto crowd, I truly love ‘em,” he shrugs. “They’re hilarious. Whole characters… which I assume makes me considered one of ‘em.”