News
George Santos’ Q-Themed Token Crashes After Former Lawmaker Steps Away
Here today, gone tomorrow.
The phrase rings true for many of the meme coins that have popped up so far this year, as assets that trade on little more than vibrations. Increasingly promoted on social media by recognizable names, some inspired by celebrity-saturated trend They too succumbed to headwinds, as promoters eventually replaced cryptocurrency enthusiasm with regular social media programming.
Former U.S. Representative George Santos, who was expelled from Congress last year, is a politically connected example. While cryptocurrency regulation has become a growing rallying cry for conservatives weeks ago, thanks to former president Donald Trump—the famous New Yorker expressed interest in meme coins on Twitter (aka X), reflecting the enthusiasm of the people.
Not long after, Santos shared Q in a post, inviting others to “storm” Solana’s blockchain with him as “Qanouns”. Santos later clarified online that his Twitter account was not hacked, but that was the second to last time he mentioned the meme coin, which combines a far-right conspiracy with the open-source intellectual property of the NFT project DAO Names.
The former lawmaker said he was stepping away from the crypto project two days after his initial post on Q and that he was initially approached to join. Asking his developer to burn his tokens and remove them from circulation, Santos said he had “learned a lot” in that short time.
“I’ve come to the conclusion that the community will grow better organically and I wish you all the best,” he wrote. “I’m rooting for you from afar.”
Since Santos stepped aside, trading for Q has all but disappeared. In recent days, the meme coin has garnered less than $7 (yes, seven dollars) in trading volume, according to Gecko Terminal.
Q’s price peaked on the day it was introduced. After rising to $0.005 on June 19, the asset’s price has since plummeted 99.6% to $0.00002, with a market cap of $18,400 at the time of writing.
On Twitter, Santos shared a link to a digital wallet with his Q holdings. It currently holds 200,000 “George Santos” (G), a completely different and illiquid meme coin, according to Solcancro.
Santos did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Decipher.
At one point, Qanouns’ Twitter page warned about scammers trying to hijack the project’s image via a competing coin on Pump.fun. However, the fake coin highlighted by the project team has seen most recent activitywhich involves burning and transfers, compared to the resource promoted by Santos.
As a protocol that allows anyone to launch a token on Solana for just a few dollars in cryptocurrency, Pump.fun has exploded in popularity in recent months. Leveraged by celebrities like Iggy Azalea, some promoters have successfully used the tool to influence a sequel.
Yet the former lawmaker may have found a better way to connect with his supporters. After his brief stint in the cryptocurrency industry, Santos announced was creating an OnlyFans.