Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has launched his own cryptocurrency called Yeezy Money (YZY) on the Solana (SOL) blockchain. In a post on X, the rapper described the project as "a new economy built on-chain" and shared a link to the official website along with his contract address. The token has sparked skepticism among fans, as Ye stated in February that he opposed issuing his own cryptocurrency and rejected a $2 million deal allegedly offered to defraud his community. Despite these skepticism, Yeezy Money is still available on the artist's official website and online store, suggesting the project is genuine.
Kanye West launches meme coin
The most talked-about topic in the Solana ecosystem this week was YZY Money, backed by famous rapper Kanye West (now Ye). The token surged dramatically in just a few hours after its launch, but quickly became the center of controversy due to a sharp drop and allegations of insider trading. YZY Money, in the first minutes of its launch, charted a fortune for investors. Starting at $0.05, the token's price quickly rose to $3.16. This represented an increase of almost 6,800%. CoinMarketCap and similar data providers indicate that the token reached a market capitalization of approximately $3 billion at its peak.
However, this frenzy didn't last long. Due to investor profit-taking, suspicious trading activity, and liquidity issues, the token's price quickly fell below $1. Within hours, billions of dollars in market capitalization vanished.
Kanye West's role is controversial
The launch of YZY Money was announced with a post from Ye's personal X (Twitter) account. While it was initially thought that the account had been hacked, a video promoting the token was later released. However, it remains unclear whether this was a real video or an AI-generated one.
The project, dubbed the "YZY ecosystem," includes not only a token but also a payment platform called Ye Pay and a crypto-linked card called YZY Card. Despite this, the biggest question mark on the community's mind was Ye's stake in the project. Previously revealed documents indicate that 70% of the token supply was allocated directly to Ye, with only 20% available for public sale and 10% reserved for liquidity.
Insider Trading Allegations
One of the most striking points for investors is the pre-launch activity of wallets with insider knowledge. Lookonchain, an on-chain analytics platform, revealed that a wallet named "6MNWV8" had prior knowledge of the contract address and attempted to purchase the token before it was released. After the launch, this wallet spent approximately 450,000 USDC to purchase 1.29 million YZY. Subsequent sales generated a $1.5 million profit. A larger investor purchased YZY for approximately 12,170 SOL ($2.28 million), and their balance quickly rose to $8.29 million. This led many to doubt the claims of a "fair launch."
Another controversial point is that the liquidity pool is filled solely with YZY tokens. While normally expected to be paired with stablecoins like USDC, the one-sided pool model allows developers or large investors to manipulate the market. This structure was previously highlighted during the LIBRA token scandal, causing significant losses for investors.
While some early investors profited from millions of dollars, late entrants faced significant losses. For example, one wallet purchased YZY with approximately 1.55 million USDC, but after the price dropped, they sold out, losing nearly half a million dollars.
