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On-chain investigator ZachXBT has accused well-known influencer Ansem of operating pump-and-dump memecoin scams in the most recent crypto contrroversy. The conflict started after prominent cryptocurrency personality Murad Mahmudov’s statement spurred discussion over the emergence of meme coins in the current market cycle.
A Twitter storm kicked off when Mechanism Capital’s Andrew Kang suggested Mahmudov’s speech might’ve triggered a new wave of memecoin investments. That’s when ZachXBT stepped in, and things got heated fast.
It seems as if @MustStopMurad‘s talk at Token2049 has catalyzed the next wave of capital reallocation into memecoins
Popcat seems to be one of the beneficiaries of these capital flows – now in price discovery
Setting up to join the 4 greats of this cycle – BONK, WIF, PEPE,… pic.twitter.com/MLap3FwbZ9
— Andrew Kang (@Rewkang) October 5, 2024
The Dark Side Of Memecoin Promotion
ZachXBT didn’t pull any punches. He accused big-name influencers like Ansem of repeatedly pumping new low-cap memecoins because they lack real trading skills. According to Zach, they’re just using their followers to make quick profits. When someone with over 500,000 followers talks about a tiny crypto project, it can send the price skyrocketing. But once they stop talking about it, the price often crashes back down, leaving regular investors holding worthless tokens.
It’s definitely the guy who blew up his fund in March 2020 with his own token down 80% in past year and pivoted to promoting pump and dumps.
— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) October 5, 2024
Crypto Influencer Fires Back
Ansem would have none of it. In defense of himself, he asserted that talking about minor cryptocurrency initiatives is perfectly acceptable. He even boasted about his work with WIF, a memecoin whose value increased from $100,000 to $5 billion. Zach, nevertheless, didn’t take long to remind him of the numerous other coins he had advertised that turned out to be worthless.
The Bigger Picture
This fight isn’t just about two guys arguing on Twitter. It shows a real problem in the crypto world. Influencers have enormous power to move markets, especially for smaller cryptocurrencies. While some say they’re just giving people what they want – after all, memecoins are super popular right now – others worry they’re taking advantage of their followers.
ZachXBT describes his role as an exposer of frauds to people and helping to get funds that have been stolen back. ZachXBT is one of the better-known bad guy trackers in crypto, as well as raising warnings about dangerous investments, and that Ansem is focused on potential profits, noting that he’s helped people much more than he’s hurt them by offering trading opportunities.
The debate raises tough questions about what’s right and wrong in crypto promotion. When does sharing investment ideas cross the line into manipulation? It’s especially tricky because the crypto market isn’t as regulated as traditional finance.
As the argument was beginning to wind down, Ansem made a final attempt to get the last word in, stating that Zach was “exaggerating” and that they could “go back and forth on memes all day.” But at this point, the damage was done. This thread pulled the curtain back on the sometimes murky world of crypto influencers and the power these influencers wield over investment decisions among their faithful.
Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView
