Ye's YZY token became a $24M cash grab for insiders—retail investors lost big.

Three weeks after its controversial launch, on-chain data reveals that 13 wallets profited over $24 million by dumping YZY, the memecoin associated with Ye (formerly Kanye West), according to blockchain analytics firm Nansen [1]. The token, which reached a peak market capitalization of $3.1 billion within 40 minutes of its debut on Solana, subsequently dropped to approximately $1.1 billion as early investors offloaded their holdings [1]. This has reignited concerns over insider trading and the speculative nature of celebrity-backed crypto projects.

YZY’s tokenomics structure allocated 20% of the supply for public sale, 10% for liquidity, and 70% to Yeezy Investments LLC, a Delaware-registered entity. This concentration of supply has led to widespread scrutiny, with on-chain analytics firm Lookonchain identifying that a single multisig wallet held 87% of the initial supply before it was distributed to multiple wallets [1]. Additionally, data shows that at least 94% of YZY tokens are held by insiders, raising concerns about potential market manipulation and pump-and-dump tactics [1].

One of the most notable cases of early profit involved a wallet identified as 6MNWV8, which spent 450,611 USDC to acquire 1.29 million YZY tokens before the official launch. The wallet later sold 1.04 million of those tokens for 1.39 million USDC, securing a profit of over $1.5 million [1]. Another whale, identified by OnChain Lens, invested 12,170 SOL (approximately $2.28 million) to purchase 2.67 million YZY tokens. The position is now valued at $8.29 million, reflecting an unrealized gain of $6 million [1].

Despite the substantial profits made by insiders, the majority of retail investors have recorded losses. Nansen reported that over $20 million in losses has been incurred by traders in the first days of trading, with more than 60% of participants currently at a loss [2]. Some investors lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in under two hours, as the price of YZY dropped from a peak of $3.16 to around $1.06. The token’s liquidity structure, which includes only YZY tokens in the pool without pairing against USDC, has been cited as a potential mechanism for early sellers to offload their tokens more easily [1].

The YZY launch has drawn comparisons to other celebrity memecoins, such as Donald Trump’s TRUMP coin and Argentina’s LIBRA token, which have similarly raised concerns about insider access and speculative trading [2]. The token’s sudden rise and sharp decline mirror the volatility seen in these projects, with on-chain data suggesting that insiders may have had early access to the contract address. This has led to calls for greater regulatory scrutiny of tokens associated with high-profile figures, particularly those with concentrated token distributions [2].

YZY can be traded on major exchanges like Bitget, Gate, and KuCoin, with the most active trading pair being YZY/USDT. The 24-hour trading volume reached $153 million, a 61% decline from the previous day [4]. While some traders continue to see opportunities in the token’s short-term volatility, the long-term outlook remains uncertain. Nicolai Søndergaard of Nansen highlighted that once the locked tokens are released in three months, a large sell-off could be expected, further complicating the token’s price trajectory [2].

Source:

[1] Insiders Cash In Millions as Rapper Ye 'Apparently' Issues YZY Token (https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/08/21/insiders-cash-in-millions-as-ye-formerly-kanye-west-apparently-issues-yzy-token)

[2] Kanye West Said Memecoins 'Prey On Fans.' Then He ... (https://www.wired.com/story/kanye-west-memecoin/)

[3] Kanye West YZY memecoin hits $3B, but falls after insider ... (https://cointelegraph.com/news/kanye-west-memecoin-pumps-3b-launch-then-falls-amid-insider-concerns)

[4] YZY Live Price Chart, Market Cap & News Today (https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/yzy)