Kanye West’s newly launched YZY token has turned the crypto market upside down, with early insiders cashing out millions and several traders losing fortunes in a matter of hours.
$3 Billion Peak, Then a Crash
The token shot to a $3 billion market capitalization within 40 minutes of going live, according to Nansen. By Thursday afternoon, its market cap had slumped to nearly $1.05 billion as heavy selling began.
On-chain tracker Lookonchain stated that the launch raised red flags from the outset. Only YZY was added to the liquidity pool, with no USDC backing. That setup allowed developers to shift liquidity at will, a tactic seen in other celebrity token launches.
Profits for a Few, Losses for Many
One insider wallet, flagged as 6MNWV8, knew the contract address ahead of launch. The wallet spent 450,611 USDC to buy 1.29 million YZY at $0.35. Hours later, it sold 1.04 million tokens for $1.39 million, leaving 249,907 YZY worth $600,000, with a profit of more than $1.5 million.
In a bizarre twist, another trader first bought into the wrong YZY and lost $710,000. He later made the money back by buying 761,000 USDC worth of the real YZY tokens and made a profit of $710,000.
Another insider split his buys across two wallets, spending 450,000 USDC for 1.89 million YZY at $0.24. He later sold 1.59 million tokens for 3.37 million USDC at $2.12. He still holds 303,425 YZY worth half a million, locking in over $3.4 million in profit, a 760% return. To beat the crowd, he even paid 129 SOL, roughly $24,000, in priority fees.
Coinbase executive Conor Grogan added to the suspicions, noting that 94% of YZY’s supply was initially controlled by insiders, with a single multisig wallet holding 87% before dispersal.
Heavy Losses Pile Up
Not everyone walked away rich. Whale wallet 6ZFnRH spent 1.55 million USDC buying 996,453 YZY at $1.56, only to sell at $1.06 for 1.05 million USDC, a loss of half a million in under two hours.
One leverage trader, address 0x68c0, has already blown through two long trades on YZY in the past hour, losing nearly $160,000, and has opened a third attempt despite the setbacks.
Screenshots shared on X show one top trader flipping tokens within minutes. He bought 3.169 million YZY for $1.5 million, sold it a minute later for $2.68 million, then repeated the same pattern twice, walking away with millions in minutes.
Celebrity Factor Keeps Fueling the Hype
Despite repeated warnings, the hype has pulled in prominent names. BitMEX Co-Founder Arthur Hayes disclosed that he bought YZY, while trader James Wynn said whales are likely to stay interested due to high liquidity.
Wynn compared YZY’s run to U.S. President Donald Trump’s memecoin, which quadrupled in value in under 28 hours. YZY token’s own website carries a disclaimer about “potential for complete loss” and bans entities from restricted jurisdictions.
West himself revealed in February that he once turned down $2 million to promote a fake token scheme. His net worth currently stands at $400 million, according to Forbes.
The launch of YZY has once again highlighted how celebrity-backed coins can create overnight millionaires and just as quickly wipe out traders who jump in late.
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