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Ruholamin Haqshanas
Ruholamin Haqshanas
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Rapper and entrepreneur Kanye West, now known as Ye, has revealed that he turned down a $2 million offer to participate in an alleged crypto scam targeting his fan base.
The scheme reportedly involved West posting a fraudulent crypto promotion to his 32.6 million followers and later claiming that his account had been hacked—by which time victims could have already lost significant sums.
“I was proposed 2 million dollars to scam my community. Those left of it. I said no and stopped working with the person who proposed it,” he said in a post on X.
West Was Offered $750,000 in Upfront Payment
The offer promised West an upfront payment of $750,000 in exchange for sharing a crypto promotion and keeping it live for eight hours.
After this period, West was allegedly instructed to claim his account was hacked to distance himself from the promotion. The deal also included an additional $1.25 million payout after 16 hours.
A screenshot shared by West detailed how the company behind the proposal planned to scam the public out of tens of millions of dollars by launching a “fake Ye currency.”
Shortly after his initial post, West shared a screenshot of a private conversation, asking an unnamed X user to provide a “crypto connect” that wouldn’t require an intermediary.
The user suggested Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, offering to request his contact information for West.
West’s revelation has drawn mixed reactions from the crypto community. Some praised his decision to expose the attempted fraud, while others speculated about his motives.
Crypto commentator Armeanio suggested that instead of launching a memecoin, West should explore using cryptocurrency for his merchandise.
“Celebrity tokens generally bring a reckoning on retail,” Armeanio warned, hinting at the risks of influencer-driven tokens.
Meanwhile, Crypto Vic speculated that West isn’t planning to launch a token but could be building hype ahead of an upcoming album release.
The Broader Trend of Celebrity Memecoins
West’s post comes amid a surge in celebrity-affiliated crypto projects, many of which have sparked controversy.
Recently, Hailey Welch, known as the “Hawk Tuah” girl, made her first public statement after distancing herself from the HAWK memecoin—a token that skyrocketed to a $490 million market cap before collapsing by 91% the next day.
Welch later claimed she had been misled by the project’s manager.
Similarly, former U.S. President Donald Trump launched the Official Trump (TRUMP) meme coin just before his January inauguration.
However, within a day, the token plummeted 38%, coinciding with First Lady Melania Trump’s launch of a competing memecoin.
A recent survey found that a significant portion of investors in both Trump and Melania’s tokens were first-time crypto buyers, reflecting the high risk of celebrity-endorsed digital assets.
As reported, the crypto industry witnessed losses totaling $1.49 billion in 2024 due to hacks and fraud, marking a 17% decrease from 2023.
According to a report by blockchain security platform Immunefi, hacks were overwhelmingly the primary cause, accounting for $1.47 billion or 98.1% of the total losses across 192 incidents.