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A new Solana memecoin pumped to $5 million within a day of launch, but some crypto users are accusing the token's creator of "shilling." Bybit/flickr.com

KEY POINTS

  • Svanevik said he was testing makenowmeme, but warned investors not to 'ape' the token
  • $IQ hit a $5 million market cap within a day of launch before plunging to $1 million
  • Some crypto users said Svanevik was 'shilling' the token

A new Solana blockchain-based memecoin is getting a lot of interest in the cryptocurrency community after the token hit a $5 million market cap within just a day of its launch.

Crypto analytics exec launches $IQ

Alex Svanevik, the founder of Nansen, which provides real-time data and insights for crypto, decentralized finance (DeFi), and NFT investors, launched $IQ Wednesday, saying he was "testing some tech a friend built." He was referring to the memecoin Launchpad makenowmeme, which "lets anyone launch a meme coin directly from a tweet on X."

$IQ hits $5 million

The token saw its market value balloon to $5 million within a day of its launch, as per data from DEXScreener. As the memecoin's market cap grew, Svanevik said it appears "smart money likes IQ."

Some crypto users on X shared their thoughts about the token, with one saying that the new memecoin "must succeed" because if it doesn't, Svanevik's "confidence will be greatly reduced."

One user said it appears the makenowmeme is "not very different" from the "pump and dump" activity on memecoin factory pump.fun.

Svanevik did warn memecoin investors when he first posted about $IQ to not "ape" the new token, a term used by crypto users when investors quickly purchase crypto without first learning or researching about it.

Pump and dump

The token has since plummeted, data from GeckoTerminal shows. It now has a market cap of around $1 million and has been down by some 48% in the last six hours. The memecoin is still up by over 1,000% in the last 24 hours. Memecoin investors are still buying the token, but many are also selling.

IQ solana
$IQ has been down by over 40% in the last six hours. Gecko Terminal

Was Svanevik 'shilling'?

Some crypto users accused Svanevik of "shilling" his new memecoin – promoting a digital asset to pump its price artificially. Shilling usually involves market manipulation and also, the use of misleading or completely false information to encourage investors to buy.

One user went as far as alleging that the coin's developer minted 1 billion $IQ tokens before transferring 60% of the supply along with Solana ($SOL) tokens "to dozens of wallets." He told other crypto investors to "be cautious."

Svanevik has yet to respond to the allegations.

Solana memecoin risks

Blockchain journalist Yohan Yun wrote about the risks of "apeing" into Solana-based memecoins. He said investors should beware of the fact that "memecoins are often set up by the very same people who invest in them – immature degens who don't have a clue what they're doing."

He went on to warn that most memecoins don't have utility and they "only have sentiment."

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