- Former Mayor Eric Adams launched the NYC Token on Solana, aiming to fund anti-hate initiatives, but the project quickly faced scrutiny.
- The token’s market cap peaked at $580 million before plummeting 80% following a $2.5 million USDC liquidity withdrawal linked to the deployer.
- On-chain analysts allege a rug pull, while the team claims the moves were for price stability rebalancing.
Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams unveiled the Solana-based Solana (SOL) NYC Token memecoin on January 12, 2026, promoting it as a tool to combat antisemitism and anti-Americanism through nonprofit funding. The launch, announced via a Times Square event and Adams’ X account, initially drove the token’s market cap to a high of $580 million. However, within 30 minutes, the price crashed over 80%, erasing hundreds of millions in value.
On-chain data revealed a wallet connected to the token’s deployer removed approximately $2.5 million in USDC liquidity from the Meteora pool at the peak. This action triggered widespread rug pull allegations from the crypto community. Analysts like Bubblemaps and Rune highlighted the suspicious timing, noting that $1.5 million was later added back after a 60% price drop, leaving about $900,000 unaccounted for.
The NYC Token, with a total supply of 1 billion and an initial circulating supply of 80 million, allocated 70% to a reserve. Critics pointed to severe centralization, with the top five wallets holding over 92% of the supply, posing significant risks to retail investors. The project’s website offered vague details on fund management and lacked a whitepaper, further fueling transparency concerns.
In a Fox Business interview, Adams stated, “The money that is generated from this coin, we’re going to zero in on how do we stop this massive increase of antisemitism across our country and across the globe, and how do we deal with the increase in anti-Americanism?” He also emphasized blockchain’s role in transparency, but mistakenly referred to it as “block change technology.”
The team responded via X, claiming the liquidity adjustments were part of a Time-Weighted Average Price (TWAP) mechanism for stability. Despite the rebound to around $128 million market cap, the incident underscores the volatility and risks in politically-tied memecoins. This comes amid Adams’ pro-crypto legacy, including converting paychecks to Bitcoin during his tenure.
Analysts warn that such projects can expose investors to manipulation, drawing parallels to past scams like the Libra token. The event highlights the need for due diligence in memecoin investments, especially those linked to public figures.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute advice of any kind. Readers should conduct their own research before making any decisions.
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