Fake Hong Kong Coin Launch on Solana Blockchain Tricks Crypto Community

An X (Twitter) account impersonating the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, John Lee Ka-chiu, falsely posted information about the launch of a National Hong Kong Coin on Thursday. The fraudulent post claimed that the coin would soon be launched on the Solana blockchain, sparking excitement in the crypto community. The post stated, “I am proud to announce the upcoming launch of the National Hong Kong Coin on the Solana blockchain. This strategic step marks a new era in digital innovation and economic growth for Hong Kong.”

Five hours later, the same account notified its 40,000 followers that the official launch of the National Hong Kong Coin would take place at 02:00 PM Hong Kong time. Some X users quoted the post, calling it a “strategic move towards digital innovation and economic growth.”

However, shortly after the announcement, a verified Facebook account named John KC Lee issued a warning about the launch of the National Hong Kong Coin. The account warned the public not to be deceived by the fake announcement and urged them to stay vigilant. The account named posted, “Someone on the internet faked the Chief Executive and posted information about the launch of the National Hong Kong Coin on the blockchain. I am here to make it clear that the information is not true, deliberately fraudulent, and I severely reprimand those who impersonate me to post false information. The incident has been referred to the police for a follow-up investigation. I advise the public to be careful, seek proof, verify authenticity, and guard against being deceived.”

Despite the warnings, the coin’s market cap crossed $200,000 after launch. This scam comes amid a broader trend of fraudulent crypto projects tied to political figures. Recent examples include coins like TRUMP, CAR, and LIBRA. These coins have been criticized for lacking real utility and suffering sharp declines in value after launch. This has caused skepticism and caution within the crypto community. A user on X commented, “As if $LIBRA, $CAR, and other coins didn’t do enough damage already. Adopt blockchain utility (i.e., tokenization, identity solutions, etc.) and stop launching meme coins.”