Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The Wolf of Wall Street says the dogs of crypto coins are a scam and their creators should be jailed

Pioneer in the pump and dump space says his successors should suffer the same fate he did

Justin Vallejo
New York
Tuesday 30 November 2021 18:38 EST
Comments
'The Elon Musk Effect' on Cryptocurrency Markets

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Cryptocurrency meme coins are wolves in dogs’ clothing and their creators should be thrown in jail, according to a Wall Street expert.

The real-life Wolf of Wall Street, Jordan Belfort, says "s***coins" like Shiba Inu and Dogecoin are outright scams with no value and no use.

Both coins, which share the name and mascot of a breed of dog from the Chūbu region in Japan, have been described as pump-and-dump schemes, are reminiscent of the unregulated penny stocks that landed Mr Belfort in prison and a Hollywood movie played by Leonardo DiCaprio.

"I’m a fan of blockchain but there’s a lot of nonsense out there, a lot of s*** coins which serve no purpose and are only there to separate people from their money," Mr Belfort told The Sun Online.

“You hear crazy stories of people making millions and billions but for every person like that there are 10,000 or a 100,000 people getting their a** handed to them in Shiba Inu… It’s not a proper investment,” he added.

The original meme cryptocurrency Dogecoin launched on the blockchain in 2013 and Shiba Inu followed seven years later as either a direct rival or part of the joke.

The Dogecoin creator, Jackson Palmer, has since distanced himself from the cryptocurrency while the Shiba Inu creator has maintained anonymity.

Mr Palmer last spoke about crypto in July to say it no longer aligns with his politics or belief systems.

Despite the claims of decentralisation, Mr Palmer said in a tweet thread that cryptocurrency is controlled by a powerful cartel of wealthy figures who became the embodiment of the very centralised financial systems they set out to replace.

"The cryptocurrency industry leverages a network of shady business connections, bought influencers and pay-for-play media outlets to perpetuate a cult-like “get rich quick” funnel designed to extract new money from the financially desperate and naïve," Mr Palmer said.

"Financial exploitation undoubtedly existed before cryptocurrency, but cryptocurrency is almost purpose-built to make the funnel of profiteering more efficient for those at the top and less safeguarded for the vulnerable," he added.

Mr Palmer’s apparent successor in the canine-based meme coin sector, meanwhile, remains anonymous.

Calling himself Ryoshi, the founder wrote a blog post that he was an unimportant "nobody" as no one is in charge of decentralized blockchain currency.

"The efforts to unmask my “identity” even if successful would be underwhelming. I am just some guy of no consequence tapping at a keyboard and I am replaceable," he wrote.

While Mr Palmer has disavowed Dogecoin and Ryoshi remains unidentified, Mr Belfort still calls the "unscrupulous" creators of meme coins will face a reckoning e sooner or later.

“People should go to jail seriously – they are not legitimate. There is no way they are ever going to work", Mr Belfort told the outlet.

“The wheels of justice grind slowly but they do grind forward, despite no one getting in trouble yet, I have to believe the government is looking at this and saying ‘wait a second, there’s all these people scamming," he added.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in