Jason Derulo, the well-known pop star, has come under fire for his participation in a meme coin scam. Despite publicly stating that he would “NEVER SELL” his newly launched meme coin, JASON, Derulo reportedly sold a substantial amount of the token after it plummeted by more than 72% following its launch. This has sparked a debate about the ethical implications of celebrities endorsing cryptocurrencies.
Derulo’s involvement in promoting the meme coin to his 3.5 million followers on X, formerly known as Twitter, caused the coin’s value to drop drastically, leading to accusations of a pump and dump scheme. While he later claimed to have been deceived by alleged scammer Sahil Arora, known for his involvement in previous scams with celebrities such as Iggy Azalea and Caitlyn Jenner, doubt has been cast on Derulo’s innocence.
Further investigations by analytics firm Bubblemaps revealed significant selling activity associated with both Arora and Derulo. Wallets linked to Arora reportedly dumped almost all of the JASON coin, making a $180,000 profit, while Derulo’s wallet received tokens directly from Arora’s and sold around $20,000 worth of the token, contradicting his earlier statement that he wouldn’t sell his tokens.
The controversy surrounding the JASON coin has raised concerns about the risks and ethics of celebrity endorsements in the cryptocurrency world, resulting in financial losses for some investors and reputational damage for the celebrities involved. Arora, the co-creator of JASON, dismissed the allegations, claiming that the plan was a success, as the coin reportedly pumped by over 100% after the initial dump.
Despite the backlash, Arora has hinted at new collaborations with celebrities like Tyga and Ronaldinho Gaúcho for launching similar meme coins, although there has been no explicit promotion of any crypto tokens by either of them, raising questions about their involvement.