On January 19, Fournier proposed the concept of the meme token Official TIKTOK COIN (TIKTOK). Consumer X underneath the nickname Asta created the coin on Pump.enjoyable and despatched the general public determine half of the emission.
The token shortly skyrocketed in worth, reaching a market capitalization of greater than $90 million. Nevertheless, on the night of the identical day, as quotes started to fall, Fournier admitted to promoting his holdings. The pockets, which he had beforehand recognized as his personal, exchanged 505 million TIKTOK for two,800 SOL ($700,000). After that, the coin’s capitalization collapsed to $5 million.
Initially, Fournier tried to elucidate this by fears of fraud, as the primary token sale was allegedly initiated by Asta, though there aren’t any related transactions within the latter’s pockets.
Asta itself, for whom the mission was an try to “begin a cool motion,” held Fournier totally answerable for “stealing cash.”
The activist later mentioned that he had submitted to the temper of the panic sale.
“I wasn’t planning to promote, […] however then all of the sudden the token began to drop at a pace I had by no means seen earlier than, and folks started to promote. I did not know what the man who created it was doing, so I simply… I tousled, and it is my fault,” he wrote on X.
On the identical time, Fournier denied receiving any revenue from the sale, insisted on deception on the a part of the creator of the token, and in certainly one of his tweets even promised to “repair every part”.
The general public determine mentioned he intends to “steer clear of cryptocurrencies” till he realizes “who will be trusted.” He additionally bragged about alleged ties to Donald Trump’s cryptocurrency advisers and a place within the president’s administration.
As a reminder, Fournier has repeatedly promoted the Restore The Republic (RTR) meme token, claiming Donald Trump was concerned in its creation. The token collapsed 95% after Eric Trump referred to as these rumors “completely false.”