Crypto bettors on the decentralized marketplace Polymarket are betting on the possibility that Kanye West, now known as Ye, will launch a crypto token this month.
Market odds currently place the chances of such a token at 76%, reflecting a significant surge of nearly 55% in the past 24 hours. This surge follows reports suggesting that Ye plans to introduce a YZY token despite previously denying any interest in launching a digital asset.
At the time of writing, the bettors have already staked over $11 million on the potential memecoin debut.
Meanwhile, blockchain data shows that various YZY-themed tokens have already appeared on Solana’s Pump.fun platform, though their legitimacy remains unverified.
YZY token
Earlier today, CoinDesk reported that the YZY memecoin could serve as the official currency for Ye’s Yeezy clothing line.
The publication attributed the information to an unsolicited press release from Hussein Lalani, who claimed to be Yeezy’s Chief Financial Officer. Multiple sources familiar with the project also reportedly corroborated the details.
West has not mentioned such plans in his continued diatribes on social media platform X.
However, according to the report, the token’s distribution plan would allocate 70% of the total supply to Ye. The remaining 30% would be split into 10% for liquidity and 20% for investors.
However, a portion of Ye’s holdings would be subject to a multi-phase vesting schedule, preventing him from selling certain tokens for up to a year.
Kanye West’s crypto controversy
Less than two weeks after Kanye West revealed on X that some scammers attempted to pay him $2 million to endorse a fraudulent memecoin using his name.
According to West, the offer included an upfront payment of $750,000, with an additional $1.25 million promised 16 hours after he promoted the token.
The deal required the promotional post to remain live for at least eight hours before he could delete it. Moreover, the scammers suggested Ye could claim his account had been hacked to make the endorsement appear unintentional.
However, the Grammy award-winning artist who recently sold Swastika t-shirts on his website rejected the proposal, stating he had no interest in deceiving his followers. He also emphasized that his net worth had climbed back to $2.77 billion without crypto endorsements.
Nonetheless, the controversial rapper hinted at future engagements with the industry. Ye recently leaked a conversation that showed him seeking advice from a trusted contact, who pointed him toward Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong for further guidance.
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