Scammers are always looking for ways to trick investors, often by launching meme coins linked to celebrities or political figures. Over the weekend, several fake tokens popped up using Cristiano Ronaldo’s name after rumors spread that he might release a meme coin. However, there’s no solid evidence to back up those claims. One of these coins even shot up to a $143 million market cap before crashing back down, all within just 15 minutes.
Fake CR7 Coin Tricks Investors
The so-called CR7 token, named after Ronaldo’s famous nickname, was pushed online by a number of influencers, though many have since taken down their posts. According to blockchain research firm Bubblemaps, the token was probably the work of a coordinated group rather than random individuals.
A lot of the hype came from Ronaldo’s existing partnership with Binance, which began in 2022 and included four NFT drops. But the majority of the fake tokens weren’t even on Binance, they popped up on Solana instead.
At least five different CR7-themed meme coins launched there, but none of them got past a $1 million market cap. The only one that gained real traction was the token hyped by influencers, which shot up to a $143.2 million market cap in just six minutes.
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