Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams is charged with orchestrating a $3.18 million cryptocurrency scam, with several celebrities involved in similar incidents.

Source: Yellow Original Title: Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams allegedly withdrew $3.18 million in crypto in a exit scam that left investors devastated

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Event Overview

Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams has become the latest high-profile figure accused of orchestrating a “rug pull” in the cryptocurrency space. He launched a meme coin claiming to be a tool to combat anti-Semitism and anti-Americanism, but subsequently appears to have extracted millions of dollars in liquidity at its peak, causing significant losses for investors.

Event Details

Adams served as Mayor of New York City (2022-2025), and calls himself the “Bitcoin Mayor.” He announced on X platform the launch of $NYC tokens, describing it as an initiative to fight hate and promote blockchain education.

The token quickly gained attention, and within hours of its launch on the Solana blockchain, its market cap soared to over $50 million. However, blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain reported that Adams withdrew funds from the liquidity pool at the high point, extracting approximately $3.18 million USDC, causing the token’s value to plummet over 80% in less than 30 minutes.

Trader Dr6s2o suffered a loss of $473,500 in under 20 minutes, a decline of 63.5%. He was forced to sell at a loss during a panic sell-off.

Records on the Solana blockchain show that shortly after launch, wallets associated with Adams made large withdrawals. Crypto analysts characterized this event as a typical rug pull, where project creators hype the token to attract investment, then withdraw funds and abandon the project.

Adams has not publicly responded to these allegations, but the incident has reignited scrutiny of his past financial conduct, including federal investigations and campaign finance issues during his tenure. The scandal intensified Adams’ difficulties after he was formally charged with corruption in 2025 and resigned.

A blockchain analyst stated that the suspected rug pull of $NYC token reflects a pattern observed in other meme coins supported by political figures, mixing citizen rhetoric with clear financial exploitation.

Notable Cases of Rug Pulls Involving Public Figures

In recent years, several public figures have faced allegations related to similar schemes:

Caitlyn Jenner ($JENNER, 2024): The Olympic athlete and reality TV star launched a token on Pump.fun, reaching a market cap of up to $46 million, then large-scale sell-offs from wallets related to the project caused a 65% drop. Investors filed class-action lawsuits alleging fraud, with reported losses including $50,000 for one applicant.

Jason Derulo ($JASON, 2024): The singer’s meme coin surged after launch but fell following large sell-offs from wallets associated with the project. Derulo admitted to selling some tokens for marketing purposes but faced charges of participating in a “pump and dump” scheme, with one promoter admitting to selling $180,000 worth of tokens.

Hale Vellchi ($HAWK, 2024): Known as “Hawk Tuah Girl,” she promoted her meme coin which reached a valuation of $490 million, but then declined 90-95% within hours due to coordinated sell-offs by a few wallets holding 80% of the supply. An investor reported losing $33,000 of life savings.

Rich the Kid (Unnamed token, 2024): The rapper’s token plummeted after promoters withdrew liquidity and executed a large dump. He publicly accused the promoters of executing a pump-and-dump scheme, claiming unauthorized actions caused the price collapse.

Logan Paul (CryptoZoo, ongoing issues from 2021-2025): The YouTuber’s NFT gaming project faced rug pull allegations for failing to deliver promised features, leading to a class-action lawsuit filed in 2023 that continued into 2025. Paul offered refunds but was accused of deceiving investors.

Rug Pull Trends in Meme Coins

Rug pulls have surged sharply in the meme coin sector, especially on platforms like Pump.fun, which have low barriers to entry allowing quick launches and exits. These events highlight the risks of lack of regulation and investor protection in the cryptocurrency market.