Is Eric Adams’ NYC Token on Sol a Rug Pull?

Eric Adams picked Monday to launch his cryptocurrency. By nightfall, crypto detectives were calling it a rug pull.

The former NYC mayor held a Times Square press conference to announce NYC Token. He talked about fighting antisemitism and making cities run better through blockchain. But investors who bought the token got something else entirely – a price crash and disappearing liquidity that looked awfully suspicious.

This wasn’t Adams’ first dance with crypto. He took his mayoral salary in Bitcoin and Ethereum back when he started the job. He set up an Office of Digital Assets and Blockchain. The guy even hosted a crypto summit at Gracie Mansion. But this launch? This one’s different.

The Money Started Disappearing Fast

Then Bubblemaps dove deeper into the blockchain data. They tracked a wallet tied to whoever deployed the token. That wallet pulled out $2.5 million in USDC right when prices peaked. Smart move if you’re looking to make a quick buck. Terrible move if you’re trying to convince people this isn’t a scam.

After the token tanked more than 60%, that same wallet dumped $1.5 million back in. Bubble maps called out the pattern – they’d seen this exact playbook before with the LIBRA token disaster.

The token’s holder distribution looks terrible. We’re talking about serious centralization problems that give insiders way too much control.

Adams’ Vision Versus Reality

At the press conference, Adams painted a picture of blockchain-powered civic improvement. He mentioned Walmart using blockchain for supply chain stuff. He promised the token would fund nonprofits tackling big social issues. The rhetoric sounded good.

The token itself launched on Solana with a billion coins total. Adams’ team claimed 70% would sit in something called the NYC Token Reserve. That’s supposed to stay locked up and not hit the market.

But Adams wouldn’t name his co-founders. He mentioned “deep-pocket backers” without identifying anyone. For a project asking people to invest money, that’s a red flag bigger than the one flying over City Hall.

The New York Post quoted Adams comparing this token to enterprise blockchain solutions. That comparison doesn’t hold up. Corporate supply chain tracking and a speculative memecoin have nothing in common except the word blockchain.

Token Details and Structure

NYC Token hit a $730 million valuation at launch. Within 30 minutes, it crashed to $110 million. The price went from $0.47 down to $0.10. That’s an 80% haircut faster than most people can check their wallets.

Token distribution analysis reveals that the top 10 wallets control 98.73% of all coins. One single wallet holds 70% of everything. Those numbers scream manipulation risk to anyone who’s spent time in crypto markets.

Adams promised he won’t take a salary from this project initially. He left the door open to changing his mind later. That’s not exactly confidence-inspiring.

Context Matters Here

Adams left office on January 1st after Zohran Mamdani replaced him as mayor. During Adams’ time running NYC, he talked big about making the city America’s crypto capital. Most of those plans never materialized beyond press releases and photo ops.

His blockchain office existed but didn’t accomplish much. The crypto summit happened once. He did take those paychecks in crypto, though the city had to convert them immediately because of government accounting rules.

Adams previously hyped a different “NYC Coin” concept using CityCoin infrastructure, like Miami tried. He also floated something called BitBond for municipal financing. Neither project went anywhere.

Now there’s this. And the timing raises eyebrows, given Adams just had five federal corruption charges dropped last year. The DOJ and the Trump administration requested dismissal with prejudice. Adams walks away from the office and immediately launches an unregulated crypto token with anonymous partners.

Why This Looks Bad

Rug pulls follow patterns. Developers hold massive token percentages. They create hype. Price pumps. Liquidity gets pulled. Price dumps. Early insiders cash out. Regular investors get stuck holding worthless tokens.

NYC Token checks multiple boxes on that list. The centralized holdings. The mystery co-founders. The liquidity movements at suspicious times. The price action that wiped out 80% of value in minutes.

Adams can claim this supports noble causes. Maybe he genuinely believes blockchain will save cities. But the on-chain data doesn’t support that narrative. The numbers suggest something much more cynical happened here.

Also Read: Top Crypto Scams Explained: Rug Pulls, Phishing & Ponzi Schemes

Where Things Stand Now

The token’s still trading, but at depression-level prices. The project website still exists with all the original promises intact.

Whether Adams intentionally scammed people or just launched the world’s most incompetent crypto project remains unclear. The outcome’s the same either way – investors lost serious money while someone connected to the token deployer made millions.

Crypto moves fast. Evidence sits permanently on the blockchain. And right now, that evidence doesn’t look good for NYC Token or the former mayor promoting it.

What exactly is NYC Token? 

Adams launched it as a Solana memecoin on January 12th. He claimed proceeds would fund nonprofits fighting antisemitism and other social issues through an unnamed organization.

How much money disappeared from NYC Token? 

At least $3.4 million in liquidity vanished shortly after launch. A wallet connected to the token deployer withdrew $2.5 million at peak prices before the crash.

Did the token really crash 80% in 30 minutes? 

Yes. NYC Token went from $0.47 to $0.10 within half an hour of launch. Market cap dropped from nearly $500 million to roughly $110 million.

Who controls most of the NYC Token supply? 

Analysis shows the top 10 wallets own 98.73% of all tokens. A single wallet holds 70% of the total supply supposedly reserved for the NYC Token Reserve.

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