The world of cryptocurrency has seen its fair share of volatile market movements, but none quite as eventful as the launch of the WSB Coin token project. Launched on May 2, by moderators of the popular trading subreddit r/WallStreetBets, the token claimed to be the official memecoin of Wall Street Bets. This subreddit gained notoriety after the GameStop short squeeze, which sent hedge funds reeling in January 2021.
The creators of the WSB token claimed that there would be no allocation for the team and that 10% of the coins would be reserved for the subreddit. The website touted it as the “fairest launch memecoin you will find with no team allocation and no presale. Just a free airdrop and some coins for the community. 10% of the $WSB supply is reserved as a treasury for the r/wallstreetbets sub to do with as they please.”
However, just days after the launch, the cryptocurrency community was hit with shocking news that one of the token’s team members had started dumping massive amounts of tokens. On May 4, on-chain detective ZachXBT tweeted that “zjz.eth,” who runs the moderation bots for the subreddit, had allegedly pulled the rug on WSB investors. According to on-chain data, zjz.eth had sold WSB coins in exchange for 334 Ether (ETH), worth around $635,000 at the time of writing.
The market reacted accordingly, and the token price plummeted from an all-time high of $0.00067279 to an all-time low of $0.00004827 in just two days. Community members were quick to warn others not to buy the dip as the moderators still had access to 10% of the total supply. The incident has raised concerns among the community members, who feel betrayed by the moderators of the subreddit.
Meanwhile, another moderator who goes by the name WSBmod, has threatened to report those involved in the dump to the police and the FBI if they don’t come forward. The moderator urged zjz.eth to return the money and claimed that they had identified the team member responsible for the dump. However, the identity of the team member is still unknown.
This incident is a stark reminder of the risks involved in investing in cryptocurrencies, especially when dealing with new tokens that are not yet widely accepted. The WSB token project had gained a significant following due to its association with the popular subreddit, but the rug pull has left many investors feeling cheated. It remains to be seen what actions the moderators of the subreddit will take to address the situation and regain the trust of their community.
While the cryptocurrency market may offer lucrative opportunities for investors, caution is advised, especially when investing in new and untested tokens. The WSB Coin dump is a clear example of the potential pitfalls that can arise when investing in such projects, and serves as a cautionary tale for investors in the cryptocurrency market.