Ye (Kanye West), American rapper and entrepreneur, officially launched his cryptocurrency, the YZY memecoin, on the Solana (SOL) blockchain. The market value of the token briefly reached 3 billion dollars after launch.
However, amid this highly anticipated launch, experts are raising concerns about insider trading and potential market manipulation.
What is the YZY memecoin?
Ye announced the launch through a post on X (formerly Twitter). He also published a video confirming the token's release. Additionally, the token has a website and an account on X that Ye follows.
Launch of Token YZY. Source: X/kanyewest
The YZY Money project, as described on its website, aims to empower users by reducing centralized control.
“YZY Money is a concept to put you in control, free from centralized authority,” says the website.
It includes the YZY token, a crypto payment processor called Ye Pay, and a YZY Card to spend YZY and USDC. Additionally, the token has an anti-sniping mechanism.
The team deployed 25 contract addresses, with one randomly selected as the official token. This 1 in 25 selection process is designed to dissuade speculative traders, redistributing power to legitimate market participants.
The tokenomics of the memecoin or 'YZYNOMICS' describes the following allocation:
Public: 20% of the total supply is allocated to the public.
Liquidity: 10% is allocated to liquidity.
Allocation of Yeezy Investments LLC: 70% of the total supply is allocated to Yeezy Investments LLC, with vesting schedules and lock-up periods ranging from 3 to 12 months.
According to data from Solscan, the current supply of the token is 999.99 million, with 31,046 reported investors. Meanwhile, the launch occurs after Ye distanced himself from other YZY tokens circulating in the market. Earlier this year, he stated his intention to launch an official cryptocurrency, as reported by BeInCrypto.
Insiders profit millions from the YZY launch—is crypto manipulation at play?
The launch of YZY was accompanied by significant volatility. According to data from Nansen, the market capitalization of the memecoin rose from 200 million dollars to a peak of 3 billion dollars before adjusting to 1.37 billion dollars at the time of this analysis.
“This is giving the feeling of a bull market,” a market observer wrote.
Market Capitalization of Token YZY. Source: Nansen
Furthermore, Hyperliquid introduced leveraged trading for the YZY token, allowing users to take long or short positions with up to 3x leverage.
“The listing is not an endorsement of the project. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Do not trade assets you are not familiar with and do not understand the risks. Exercise control. NFA,” noted the post.
However, the token launch also attracted substantial criticism. Lookonchain, a blockchain analysis company, suggested that insiders had prior knowledge of the YZY token launch. They prepared funds in advance and quickly bought the token as soon as it was launched.
“The insider wallet 6MNWV8 knew the contract address in advance and even tried to buy yesterday. 6MNWV8 spent 450,611 USDC to buy 1.29 million YZY at 0.35 dollars today and sold 1.04 million YZY for 1.39 million dollars, leaving 249,907 YZY (600 thousand dollars), with a profit of over 1.5 million dollars,” Lookonchain wrote.
The company also highlighted that another trader (2DNb2C) had previously bought the wrong YZY token and lost 710 thousand dollars.
“He spent 761 thousand USDC on the real YZY and now has a profit of over 710 thousand dollars—recovering his loss,” the company added.
Additionally, another insider invested 450 thousand USDC to buy 1.89 million YZY at 0.24 dollars per token across two wallets. They then sold 1.59 million YZY for 3.37 million USDC at 2.12 dollars per token.
The insider still holds 303,425 YZY (valued at 510 thousand dollars) and has a profit of over 3.4 million dollars. Lookonchain highlighted that one of the wallets paid 129 SOL (equivalent to 24 thousand dollars) in fees to secure priority access.
“A whale spent 12,170 SOL, worth 2.28 million dollars, to buy 2.67 million YZY and transferred it to another wallet. Currently, these YZY are valued at 8.29 million dollars, resulting in a profit of 6 million dollars,” reported OnChain Lens.
KANYE CRYPTO TOKEN LAUNCH $YZY RUMORED TO BE A PRESALE FILLED WITH INFLUENCERS AND INSIDERS
ONCE AGAIN RETAIL WILL BE STUCK HOLDING THE BAG WHILE INSIDERS CASH OUT MILLIONS. STOP SUPPORTING CELEBRITY TOKEN LAUNCHES THEY ARE DESTROYING CRYPTO pic.twitter.com/RSGmsxeWkO
— scooter (@imperooterxbt) August 21, 2025
Furthermore, Solscan also showed significant concentration, with the top 10 investors controlling 92.23% of the supply, increasing centralization risks.
In addition to the buy from insiders, Lookonchain also raised concerns about the liquidity pool, which contains only YZY, potentially allowing developers to manipulate trades.
“The developer can sell YZY by adding/removing liquidity, similar to LIBRA,” the company stated.
Finally, Bubblemaps revealed that malicious actors launched fake tokens to deceive investors.
Kanye West just followed @YZY_MNY
THERE IS NO CA
But scammers are already bundling fake $YZY tokens
Don’t fall for it pic.twitter.com/9q0hMn6iac
— Bubblemaps (@bubblemaps) August 19, 2025
Thus, while the project attracts attention, its long-term viability remains uncertain. It is important to exercise caution given the ongoing scrutiny of the token's distribution and trading patterns.
The article Kanye West launches YZY Coin, but is the power in the right hands? first appeared on BeInCrypto Brazil.
