The odds of Kanye West launching a token by the end of February suddenly spiked to 83% as rumors circulated of a new YZY ticker in the making. In the past few days, the odds of a launch expanded more slowly to about 45%.
On Polymarket, the odds of a new Kanye West meme token suddenly spiked to 83% following rumors of an upcoming launch. Later, the odds decreased to 80%, while the market retained volumes above $9.3M.
The prediction market spiked within minutes, later retreating to 61% for ‘Yes’ tokens. | Source: Polymarket
The market resolution was not imminent, as the launch date remained uncertain, with a week to go until the end of the month. However, the odds gained additional activity, fluctuating by 5% with additional bets. The market is not yet proposing ‘Yes’ as a resolution, as traders debate the authenticity of claims, as well as the exact timeline of launching the YZY token.
Betting market in conflict for possible insider information
The betting market discussion focused on the Coindesk article, which cited an unknown source. Some of the traders commented on potential insider knowledge, as one account sold all ‘No’ shares just minutes before the publication.
There are also rumors of having a fake email to sway the market and benefit from trading ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ tokens even without a resolution.
According to others, the original email came from Hussein Lalani through a yeezy.com email address. The message was sent to CoinDesk with no solicitation, and the publication released it immediately, not honoring the required embargo. This led to an immediate reaction in the betting market, though traders still cited uncertainty. According to CoinDesk, the document was authentic.
Kanye West, who has been blocked from using Shopify for his brand, is switching to Yeezy.com. The site itself is inactive and does not display any message of the token. Briefly, the site suggested the launch would come sometime on Friday.
The lack of clarity led to the immediate selling of the now appreciating ‘Yes’ tokens. Holders of the ‘No’ position have also announced their plans to hold and potentially ride a recovery if the news proves false.
As of February 21, the biggest holder of ‘Yes’ tokens is a user with the nickname bullishonsol, coinciding with the X handle @bullishonsol, an NFT collector and high-risk meme investor. The whole position is for 296,528 shares. The top ‘No’ position belongs to trader aenews2, with 260,571 shares.
Paradoxically, after the announcement, most traders started opening ‘No’ positions, suggesting the actual token may not materialize before the end of February. Kanye West himself, though reinstated on X, has not mentioned the token or the YZY ticker.
The market itself was an indicator of the token’s launch. However, ‘Yes’ token holders had at least 30 minutes to sell before the price started backtracking. The binary tokens became more volatile, with ‘Yes’ tokens dropping again to as low as 61%.
YZY ticker taken by Pump.fun rug pulls
Since meme tokens are entirely unregulated, Pump.fun tokens tried to spoof the eventual launch of a new asset with the YZY ticker.
One recently launched YZY token went through several high-risk periods. The initial token dev performed a rug pull soon after the launch. After the initial sell-off, insiders sniped the token and performed another pump-and-dump. Currently, YZY still trades with $277K in liquidity, remaining highly risky for traders who jump onto the trend without checking.
The token’s CA is also spreading on social media, with claims it was hidden in the code of the Yeezy.com website. There is no evidence that the proposed CA, 4NBTf8PfLH4oLFnwf3knv46FY9i5oXjDxffCetXRpump, is the official asset, which will be used for online shopping on the Yeezy.com site.
Despite the rapper’s controversies, the crypto community remains skeptical about an official launch. The recent events and social media hype, however, seem to be directed to the existing YZY ticker, which is actively spreading on X with the promises of an early entry.
The YZY token peaked at $0.009 and later lost more than 80% of its value to $0.002. The token itself did not trigger the resolution of the Polymarket bet.
The token’s CA was also making the rounds for days before the Polymarket betting pair gained more traction. Talk of another YZY token arrived just days after Kanye West stated he refused an offer to launch a celebrity token and rug-pulled his followers.
