The MEME coin circle is like an unregulated casino — the habitual offender is still the same habitual offender, only the injured retail investors are replaced time and again.
You have likely seen the man in this picture: Hayden Davis (nicknamed Kelsier in the circle), founder of the crypto investment firm Kelsier Ventures.
For retail investors who often lose money in celebrity tokens, his name is practically the 'blacklist of pitfalls' — relying solely on insider trading and manipulating liquidity to reap profits, from MELANIA to LIBRA, and now the latest YZY, he has always made a fortune, leaving retail investors with nothing.
From MELANIA to LIBRA: his 'harvesting template' has never changed.
Davis's tricks are quite simple: riding on celebrity hype, early positioning, skyrocketing and cashing out, each step stepping on the 'pain points' of retail investors.
First, let's look at Trump's wife's $MELANIA token. Davis himself admitted that he participated in the formulation of the issuance strategy for this project. The on-chain data is even more straightforward: before the project was publicly announced, insiders had already quietly built their positions; once the token was launched and the price was driven up, they accurately sold off and cashed out, leaving retail investors who chased the high trapped at the mountain top.
Even more ruthless is Argentine President Milei's LIBRA token. Launched on Valentine's Day, February 14, this year, Davis was not only a key promoter but also claimed to be Milei's "blockchain and AI advisor," attracting a large influx of funds with the 'presidential endorsement.' What was the result? LIBRA's market value evaporated by $4.6 billion in just 6 hours, and the project team directly withdrew $87 million USDC and SOL from the liquidity pool. Davis and his team made an additional $6 million through insider targeting — retail investors' money was just taken away by the 'advisor' and the team.
YZY played another 'coincidence': as funds were just unfrozen, $12 million was instantly secured.
Just when everyone thought Davis would restrain himself after the LIBRA collapse, the latest revelations from the on-chain analysis platform Bubblemaps show that he probably struck again, this time targeting the YZY token launched by Ye (KanYeWest). He made a staggering $12 million overnight.
The level of 'coincidence' in this matter is so high that even outsiders feel something is off:
1. The funds were unfrozen at a fortunate time: On August 20, 2025, a U.S. court unfroze $57.6 million USDC belonging to Davis and his associates — this money was originally related to the $LIBRA collapse case. The court stated, "There is no evidence to prove they are fleeing, no irreparable loss, and the probability of winning the case is low."
2. The timing of the token issuance was even more fortunate: just one day later, on August 21, Ye announced the launch of the $YZY token.
3. Targeting addresses were already ambushed: Bubblemaps discovered that 14 wallet addresses withdrew funds from centralized exchanges just 24 hours before the YZY launch, and through cross-chain transfer protocols (CCTP), they transferred and shared deposits, ultimately traceable back to previously disclosed related addresses of Davis. These addresses acted like a 'sniping cluster' waiting for the YZY launch.
Sure enough, just one minute after Ye's token announcement (UTC time 1:54 AM), these 14 addresses began to buy in frantically, ultimately easily pocketing $12 million. Although it cannot be 100% confirmed that Davis had insider information or direct links to the YZY team, the connection of these addresses to him, combined with the 'coincidence' in timing, is evident to anyone with common sense — this is clearly a replica of an old trick.
On-chain data does not lie: his 'harvesting chain' has earned over $100 million.
In fact, Davis's 'harvesting network' has long been exposed clearly by on-chain data.
In the previous MELANIA targeting case, an address (P5tb4) earned $2.4 million and then immediately transferred it to the MELANIA creator's address (oxcEA); oxcEA then sponsored the LIBRA creator's address (DEfcyK), which ultimately earned $6 million in LIBRA.
Not just these two projects, these related addresses also participated in the trading of tokens like TRUST, KACY, VIBES, and HOOD — all following the 'pump and dump' scheme, with total profits exceeding $100 million. This is not 'investment'; it is clearly systematic 'harvesting.'
He stated, "This is an unregulated casino for insiders."
The most ironic part is that Davis does not hide it at all. In a previous interview, he openly admitted to insider trading, targeting wallets, and manipulating the market, arrogantly stating, "This is an insider's game; it's an unregulated casino."
Indeed, no matter how hot the MEME coin circle is, it cannot change the essence of the 'casino' — and 'cheaters' like Davis have never left. Retail investors may forget the pain of losing money last time, but on-chain data remembers every harvesting.
