Meme coin fraud that threatens the essence of Ethereum | CoinDesk JAPAN | Coin Desk Japan

The constant inflated price of worthless tokens threatens the reputation and existentiality of the Ethereum blockchain.

influencer scammer

Such a memecoin culture is due to some of the most chronically influencers in the cryptocurrency industry, who exist in the “influencer’s pit of despair”. ing.

It’s a deep, dark hole where scammer-like influencers climb by kicking each other down while targeting the most affordable retail investors. The influencer hole exists in the form of the voice distribution service “Twitter Space”. But it’s not just a Twitter space, it’s a debilitating barnyard. There you lose your wallet.

Anyone can use the Ethereum blockchain, so it is a fundamental paradox that anyone can use the Ethereum blockchain. If the Ethereum blockchain is your local park, memecoiners are like a bunch of unruly teenagers listening to music on discarded speakers.

For example, you may be a developer working on advanced technologies such as zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs, or you may represent an organization working on L2 solutions. I can’t help but grit my teeth when I hear that some not-so-smart people who are brave enough to do something useful have made a million dollars just by tweeting.

Open source networks like Ethereum have always had memecoins. But for crypto to become widespread, the industry needs to come together and find a way to deal with the worst form of worthless profit-seeking: memecoins.

I’m already feeling hopeless about how fruitless the memecoin scam will be.

When Pepecoin (PEPE) was born, the team made it clear that the project was pure meme. As the industry continues to strive for mass adoption, making a living as someone who preys on the misfortune of others in the game of the obscure team that created the meme coin is very futile. It’s nothing more than frequent buying and selling with mindless algorithms, as if you invented the wheel and only use it to spin around.

The Current State of Memecoin Scams

The Twitter space is a terrible disaster. It seems that the memecoin related space is legally required to proceed uncomfortably loud for no reason.

At least three of the cast have equally bad NFTs in their PFPs (profile pictures) and admit to committing several misdemeanors during the hour. At least 75% of the audience have lost money trading DeFi protocols.

Before you get mad, remember what the “influencer hole” does.

It deceives individual investors and sells them the notion that financial nihilism is the truth. It promotes the idea that blockchain (or cryptocurrencies or Web3) is just speculation, and teaches that the only option in life is to earn fast enough and work hard.

The trend these days is painfully corny. It’s embarrassing to write about it, so vulgar fraud continues. Influencer scammers, who have often made money on memecoins in the past, post their Ethereum addresses and instruct them to send Ethereum (ETH) there, without being detected by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). just pray The tacit understanding of this scam is “no return”. I’d rather set a real wallet on fire than make a deal like this.

We do not know what punishment is appropriate for such crimes against humanity. A first-time offender might have to wear an Ethereum T-shirt and attend the Bitcoin conference in Miami.

Repeat offenders may need harsher penalties, such as locking them in a dark room for up to two years and listening to the monologue of cryptocurrency entrepreneur Richard Heart on repeat.

Alternatively, exile all the influencer scammers to some island.

Organizing a fake conference called “NFT Pit Island”, a decentralized autonomous organization ( DAO).

Itchy due to permissionless

There is a real problem here. Influencer scammers say up front that you won’t get anything, and you’ll be fine with that. But underneath it lies a darker message. we can do nothing. This is the “permissionless” paradox inherent in the blockchain community.

Permissionlessness is a red line and a non-negotiable theme in Ethereum culture. Difficulties aside, if it lost its permissionless nature, Ethereum would not exist.

As long as technical solutions are prohibited, the only option left is a social solution. Imagine the Ethereum blockchain as a cosmopolitan city. There is a city hall with developers, organizers and researchers. Some financial districts have DeFi (decentralized finance). Also NFT’s bohemian district. There are also ordinary citizens who live on Main Street. And then there’s the seedy downtown where the scammers live.

Downtown isn’t as bad as Skid Row, a crime hotspot with people plotting to social-engineer holders of the popular NFT Bored Ape. As in any city, you can put yourself in a safe neighborhood and expect the police to deal with it.

However, Ethereum does not have a police force. In a decentralized, permissionless culture, no one imposes sanctions like real-world law (outside of the Ethereum blockchain, of course, governments impose sanctions).

In other words, the long-term message of the culture of ReFi (Regenerative Economy) people “Regen” outweighs the short-sighted culture of fearless crypto traders “Degen” and immature. We have to create an atmosphere and a cultural background that will push us to the next stage.

Regens are those within Ethereum culture who are dedicated to ensuring that technology has a long-term positive impact on society without creating negative externalities.

In the words of GitCoin founder Kevin Owocki, we have to think about how we can get more Ethereum supporters into Regen instead of Digen. not.

Ethereum Congress

Here I would like to suggest something a little different. I believe the Ethereum blockchain should introduce a “civil council”. In my native Ireland, randomly selected citizens are convened to discuss important issues related to the Irish Constitution. While there is no constitution for the Ethereum blockchain, an annual forum where various stakeholders gather to discuss key issues could be of value.

Similar to the open-source concept that “many eyes can solve a problem faster than one”, the Ethereum parliament has a number of pressing issues (e.g., the staking arena that dominates). What to do with the so-called decentralized service Lido), but also how to proactively encourage people to become Regen instead of Digen.

Citizens from each stakeholder group, from validators to developers to application developers to ordinary investors, can come together for in-depth discussions.

And most importantly, it encourages the community as a whole to take responsibility for the protocol and introduces the idea that social issues are just as important as technical ones.

Or you can keep sending ETH to scammers…

｜Translation and editing: Akiko Yamaguchi, Takayuki Masuda
｜Image: Pepecoin with a frog motif (from Pepecoin’s Twitter)
｜Original: The Memecoin Grift and How It Threatens Ethereum Culture