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22-year-old Haliey Welch, known as Hawk Tuah girl, is embroiled in controversy on Thursday following the introduction of her $HAWK coin, which raised alarms regarding a potential pump-and-dump operation.
Hawk Tuah Girl Haliey Welch’s Troubling Crypto Launch
Reports indicate that $HAWK’s market capitalization surged to $490 million before rapidly declining by 91% shortly after its debut on Wednesday, December 4.
Data from blockchain analytics firm Bubble Maps reveals that approximately 80% of all wallets and snipers were managed by insiders, distorting the token’s value.
“We attempted to prevent snipers as effectively as possible through elevated fees at the beginning of the launch on @MeteoraAG,” Welch stated in a Thursday post on X. “Fees have now been reduced.”
Copy and pasting:
Hawkanomics:
Team hasn’t sold one token and not 1 KOL was given 1 free token
We tried to stop snipers as best we could through high fee’s in the start of launch on @MeteoraAG
Fee’s have now been dropped pic.twitter.com/E7xN9VmCrx— Haliey Welch (@HalieyWelchX) December 4, 2024
In the wake of the cryptocurrency’s dramatic fall, buyers of $HAWK quickly took to social media to express their frustrations regarding the purported pump-and-dump scheme.
“My $35,000 investment in $Hawk is now worth $2,000 after just 10 minutes of purchasing,” one user on X shared Wednesday, claiming they utilized their children’s college funds for the investment. “I am a huge fan of Hawk Tuah, but you have taken my life savings.”
“I’m down about $20,000 right now on the $HAWK token,” another user posted. “I sincerely hope that @HalieyWelchX can offer us some updates on the roadmap or something.”
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“I for one am utterly shocked and surprised by how this has unfolded,” he added. “Please send help as soon as possible.”
Just filed my report against @HalieyWelchX and the $HAWK team for rugging investors. Here’s the link below to file a complaint https://t.co/3o2sniVyht https://t.co/ghatzK7L6d pic.twitter.com/Rjuj3LZqZB
— scooter (@imperooterxbt) December 5, 2024
One user posted a screenshot of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) website along with the complaint line, effectively encouraging other affected investors to lodge a complaint with the federal authority.
$HAWK Coin Creators Respond to Rug Pull Accusations
OverHere, the team responsible for Welch’s token, countered the allegations in a late Wednesday post on X.
“Haliey’s Team has not sold any tokens at all,” they stated. “Haliey’s Team holds a 10% allocation that is locked for one year and will vest over three years.”
“The remaining tokens are allocated across various wallets in accordance with the tokenomics,” OverHere added, indicating that the company would offer a more comprehensive update on the situation at a later time.
Pump-and-dump schemes, where a small group of insiders illegitimately inflate a token’s price, have historically been associated with celebrity-backed cryptocurrencies and meme coins.
A 2023 report from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis revealed that nearly 25% of new tokens launched during the 2022 bear market experienced a price drop indicative of a pump-and-dump scheme.
The post Hawk Tuah Girl Defends Meme Coin Amid 90% Drop After Launch appeared first on Cryptonews.
