The Sean “’Diddy” Combs X account promoted an Official Diddy Solana meme coin on Thursday night. Shortly after, the token pumped to a market cap of $181 million before crashing 79.5% to $37 million in a matter of hours. This comes amid Combs’ sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial in New York, in which he is alleged to have coerced women into sexual events nicknamed “freak-offs.” One legal expert warned that the optics of the token launch could lead prosecutors to believe the alleged sex trafficker is showing a lack of remorse.
The Official Diddy Meme (DIDDY) was posted on Diddy’s X approximately an hour after launch as the token soared to a $181 million market cap. One wallet bought $349,800 worth of DIDDY prior to the X post, selling the stash over 60 transactions for $918,000 worth of profit. That was before the token crashed almost 79.5% to $37 million over two hours.
Then, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, Ye, reposted Combs’ post adding a heart emoji and “#FreeDiddy.” This prompted a momentary pump back to $81.5 million before yet another crash back down to $32 million. Ariel Givner, crypto attorney and founder of Givner Law, told Decryptthat launching a meme coin while under federal investigation is “a high-risk move” that could be viewed as “manipulative or self-serving.”
“Courts themselves don’t typically rule on optics. But prosecutors do.” Givner said, “I could very easily see this be used to demonstrate lack of remorse or as an indicator of ongoing exploitation of celebrity status for personal gain, even while incarcerated.” Givner explained that this could influence Combs’ sentencing, if he were to be found guilty, or even pre-trial motions. Plus, she said, the launch could tie the music mogul to additional financial charges.
“From a legal and ethical standpoint, launching a meme coin while facing the very serious allegations he’s facing is grotesque.” Givner added, “It trivializes the gravity of the accusations and turns public outrage into a PR opportunity. I think at best it’s a tone-deaf cash grab.” Notorious celebrity crypto promoter Sahil Arora is claiming that he is behind the scheme. He told Decrypt that rapper Tory Lanez connected him with Combs’ son, King Combs, who runs the social media account and posted the meme coin promotion. Arora then claims to have worked with Ye’s manager John Monopoly to get the Ye repost. Arora shared Monopoly Instagram message screenshots with Decrypt.
Arora made his name by helping former Olympian Caitlyn Jenner launch her own token last year. Two days after its launch, Jenner told Decrypt that the celeb crypto promoter owed her “lots of money” after going silent following a “couple of wire transfers.” Since then, Arora has continued to launch meme coins with the likes of R&B singer Jason Derulo and rappers Rich the Kid and Lil Pump. Almost every time, the tokens have crashed within hours of launch. When Decrypt asked if this time was different and if DIDDY was a long-term project, Arora replied: “None are.”
