This week, a new PolitFi token made the headlines amid the crypto market recovery. Restore The Republic (RTR) caught the attention of investors after rumors of being linked to the Trump family surged. The Trump-themed token saw a massive surge after its launch. However, its price quickly plunged after the former US president’s camp denied any links with it.
Trump-Themed Token Turns Out Fake
On Thursday night, a PolitiFi token was surrounded by controversy after it plummeted by over 95% just hours after launching. Restore The Republic was described as a token to “ensure that our nation remains a beacon of freedom, justice, and opportunity.”
The memecoin created a buzz among investors as it was suspected to be the Trump Family’s highly anticipated crypto project announcement. As a result, RTR’s price surged over 14,500% following its launch, going from trading at $0.001 to as high as $0.15.
The token also hit a market capitalization of $155 million three hours after launching. However, the rapid surge was quickly met with a massive drop after Eric Trump claimed the project wasn’t related to the former US president.
In an X post, Eric warned crypto investors of fake tokens, stating that “the only official Trump project has NOT been announced.” He also emphasized that the news would come directly from their camp first.
Immediately after, RTR’s market cap nosedived, going from $125 million to $13 million. The token went from trading around the $0.12 mark to $0.007 in less than an hour, leaving many investors with massive losses.
On-chain data analysis firm Lookonchain revealed that a crypto whale lost over $800,000 after FOMO-buying the token. Per the report, the investor spent 5,800 SOL, worth $916,400, to buy 7.2 million RTR at its highest price.
Due to the price crash, the whale sold the RTR tokens for only 118 SOL, worth around $18,000, resulting in a loss of $898,500 in four hours.
Crypto Scam Déjà Vu
Online reports revealed that insiders made over $4 million from the memecoin. The newly created wallets bought millions of RTR as it opened trading. The insiders sold the token right after Trump’s camp denied ties to the memecoin.
After the price crash, the crypto community discussed the token’s shady launch and promotion. Students for Trump group’s co-founder and chairman, Ryan Fournier, suggested in a now-deleted post that RTR was the official Trump token.
Moreover, several KOLs (Key opinion leaders) promoted RTR to their followers, claiming it was the highly anticipated Trump project. After the collapse, some of these influencers affirm to have lost large sums of money.
One KOL also claims to possess “legal documentation” that proves Donald Trump Jr.’s involvement with the launch. The crypto community quickly compared this incident to the last “official” token linked to the Republican presidential candidate.
Nearly two months ago, DJT made the headlines after being rumored to have been launched by 18-year-old Barron Trump. At the time, other Trump-inspired tokens crashed by over 30%, including the MAGA (TRUMP). However, it was later revealed that the token was created and run by “Pharma bro” Martin Shkreli.
Following the RTR debacle, Donald Trump Jr. spoke about cryptocurrencies inspired by his father. He stated that he has “nothing to talk about” regarding these tokens. He also deemed people assuming that all Trump-themed tokens are linked to the family as the problem.
The businessman clarified that he loves and respects memecoin culture, but they are not the crypto project they have been teasing.
Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com