On March 28, 2024, Judge Lewis Kaplan sentenced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison for fraud. This conviction makes Bankman-Fried the first FTX figure to be incarcerated in connection with the exchange’s bankruptcy in November 2022.
Memecoins in flames
At the time of the conviction, a developer launched a memecoin called Sam Baseman Fraud on the Coinbase layer-2 Base platform. This memecoin, which refers to Bankman-Fried with the ticker FTX, saw a rally of over 23,300%, reaching a market capitalization of $1.5 million. However, memecoin quickly sold off, losing over 85% of its value in three hours. At the time of publication, the price of memecoin stood at around 0.06 USD, down 60% from its peak.
Memecoins on Solana
Another Bankman-Fried-inspired memecoin, Som Bonkmon Fraud, was launched on the Solana (SOL) platform. This memecoin saw an increase of over 18,000% from its launch value of USD 30,000, reaching a market capitalization of USD 20 million. However, memecoin also experienced a rapid fall, losing over 95% of its value above its peak. On publication, the price of memecoin was 0.0008 USD, slightly above its launch price.
Political memecoins
Bankman-Fried-inspired memecoins are the latest in a series of memecoins inspired by political and crypto figures. Other political memecoins, such as Biden and Trump, have sought to capitalize on the attention around the US election.
Conclusion
Sam Bankman-Fried’s 25-year prison sentence led to a surge in memecoins inspired by him, with mixed results. Memecoins fluctuated rapidly, with prices fluctuating dramatically in the hours following the conviction.
