Real Madrid and French soccer star Kylian Mbappé had his Twitter account hacked, resulting in a series of offensive posts and a sudden promotion of a fraudulent meme coin.
The incident sparked chaos in the cryptocurrency market as the promoted MBAPPE token experienced a rapid surge and crash.
MBAPPE A now-deleted tweet from a pump-and-dump cryptocurrency scam. source:X
MBAPPE token price surges, then plummets
The MBAPPE token, launched on the Solana blockchain, quickly reached a market cap of $464 million before plummeting by 99% within seconds.
For a brief moment, it outperformed established tokens like Mog Coin, Raydium, and ApeCoin.
However, this success was short-lived.
Within 47 seconds, the token's market cap fell to $4.58 million, leaving many investors at a loss.
One fortunate trader managed to turn $29 into $125,790, but others were not so lucky.
One unlucky investor who put $1 million into the token saw their investment dwindle to just $14,600.
One lucky trader clocked in at the top and made $125,790 source: DEX Screener
Hacker posts cause social upheaval
The hacked account not only promoted the scam token but also engaged in offensive comments about fellow athletes and teams.
One post falsely claimed that Mbappé's former teammate, Lionel Messi, was transferring to Manchester United for free.
related reading:Football superstars Messi and Ronaldinho's Instagram accounts hacked? He actually endorsed the newly launched meme currency Water for the notorious beer fraud gang!
In another, the account referenced Sahil Arora, a notorious crypto promoter known for his involvement in the meme coin market.
Arora later confirmed his connection to the MBAPPE token but declined to clarify his role in the hack.
Celebrity meme coin scams occur frequently
The Mbappé hack is part of a wider trend of social media accounts being hijacked to promote pump-and-dump schemes.
Other victims of similar scams include major brands and celebrities like McDonald's, Metallica, Hulk Hogan, and Doja Cat.
related reading:McDonald's Instagram Hacked, $700,000 Stolen in Grimace Memecoin Scam
related reading:Doja Cat's Twitter account was hacked by encryption hackers, and she began to promote the DOJA meme coin and had a passionate confrontation with Iggy Azalea