- Hackers took over Zach Witkoff’s X account to shill a fake Barron Trump-themed memecoin.
- The $BARRON token surged to $73M before crashing 99%, sparking fresh concerns about crypto scams.
Zach Witkoff, co-founder of Donald Trump-linked crypto project World Liberty Financial, fell victim to a cyberattack when hackers hijacked his X account to promote a fraudulent Barron Trump-themed memecoin, $BARRON. The scam coin $BARRON triggered a speculative frenzy, sending the token’s market cap soaring to $73 million before it crashed by 98% within minutes.
In a deleted tweet, the hackers sparked public interest in the fake memecoin linked to Trump’s youngest son, Barron, claiming, ‘Trump should confirm it soon.’ Investors quickly jumped in and invested heavily in the unverified coin.
However, World Liberty Financial, a Decentralized Finance project launched in October 2024, quickly distanced itself from the scam. The company took to their X account to clarify the incident.
“Zach Witkoff’s account was compromised, and a fake Barron meme was posted. Please do not engage. We are resolving the issue ASAP,” the post said.
Despite the warning, the coin’s meteoric rise and subsequent collapse left many retail investors devastated, highlighting ongoing vulnerabilities in the memecoin sector.
Trump-Themed Memecoin Scams Gain Momentum
The $BARRON scam incident is not the first Trump-related crypto controversy. In January, Ivanka Trump, daughter of President Trump publicly disavowed a memecoin bearing her name, calling it a scam that defrauded investors of their “hard-earned money.”
“To be clear: I have no involvement with this coin. This fake coin risks deceiving consumers and defrauding them of their hard-earned money, and the unauthorized use of my name and likeness is a violation of my rights” Ivanka emphasized.
Similarly, the launch of Donald Trump’s Official Trump ($TRUMP) token and Melania Trump’s Melania Meme ($MELANIA) sparked a wave of imitation projects seeking to exploit the Trump brand for profit.
These incidents have raised questions about celebrity-linked cryptocurrencies. “How does this work? I share my dog’s name and picture, and then people create memecoins? How do you know which one is “official”? or does that even matter?” Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) commented, questioning memecoins’ legitimacy.
Regulatory Gaps Leave Investors Exposed
The rise of celebrity-themed memecoins has fueled debates about crypto regulations. Many tokens are created overnight, promoted through hype, and then abandoned, leaving investors with significant losses.
SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce recently acknowledged these challenges stating,
“Many of the memecoins that are out there probably do not have a home in the SEC under our current set of regulations.”
This regulatory loophole allows bad actors to exploit the market with little to no consequences.
As memecoin scams become more frequent, investors are urged to exercise caution. The $BARRON collapse serves as yet another warning that not all hype-driven projects are what they seem.
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