On July 8, the crypto community was shaken when soccer superstar Lionel Messi promoted WaterCoin ($WATER) on his personal Instagram Stories. This story, also shared by the Instagram account linked to the memecoin WATER, featured an image of Messi alongside the memecoin’s logo peeking over his shoulder.
With 504 million followers, Messi’s endorsement caused the token to surge nearly 400% within just three hours. Despite the token’s subsequent drop, which dropped 80% from its all-time high, it remains impressive.
After Messi was promoted, former Brazilian soccer star Ronaldinho promoted WATER on Instagram Stories. This further motivated traders to take risks in hopes of substantial profits.
However, Messi and Ronaldinho’s involvement sparked mixed reactions from the public and the crypto community. Some viewed this as validating the cryptocurrency, while others were skeptical about the long-term viability of such meme coins. Celebrity promotions often raise concerns about potential market manipulation and financial risks for investors.
Tracking tool Bubblemaps issued a warning in a post on X, urging followers to bring WATER’s price to zero. Despite concerns about concentrated supply, investors ignored these warnings and bought the token after Messi’s post. It seems that investors have forgotten how Messi shilled the Planet token in February this year, and it dumped 90% just a few days later.
Messi just promoted $WATER to his 500 million followers
30% of the supply controlled by insiders
Send it to zero pic.twitter.com/fNl30eBTCt
— Bubblemaps (@bubblemaps) July 8, 2024
This Isn’t Messi’s First Token Promotion
In February 2024, Lionel Messi promoted the Planet cryptocurrency token, marking his first collaboration with the environmental nonprofit Join The Planet. Messi released a video urging ecological sustainability and the fight against pollution using blockchain technology, aligning with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. This led to significant volatility in the token’s price within a week.
According to CoinCodex data, the token’s volatility reached 6.82% on February 21, which is considered high in the 5% to 10% range. The price of PLANET peaked at $0.00011 on February 19, with a trading volume of $23.5 million within 24 hours. However, by April 11, the token had plummeted 90% from its all-time high, trading at $0.0000072.
Will Dump History Repeat with WaterCoin?
WaterCoin, a meme coin focused on raising awareness about water issues, operates on the Solana network. It outlines four development phases: token presale, exchange listings, celebrity partnerships, and becoming a valued community token. However, this roadmap lacks detailed planning, and the token already shows signs of a “pump and dump” scheme.
A cluster of wallets holds over 35% of WATER’s total supply, posing significant risks for potential investors. The project’s website disclaims, “WATER is a meme coin with no intrinsic value or financial profit expectations.”
Following Messi’s endorsement, WATER’s price surged over 200% within two hours but quickly dropped more than 90% from its ATH.
It is a fact that Investing in meme coins carries high risks, as they typically lack real value and are often created as jokes or to capitalize on short-term social media trends. The prices of meme coins can fluctuate wildly due to market sentiment, celebrity promotions, or social media campaigns, increasing the risk of rapid asset loss.
Whether WATER is a scam is known only to the project behind it. While CoinMinutes cannot predict if WATER will experience a significant dump like PLANET, the current outlook suggests it could happen soon.
Celebrity endorsements may only provide temporary benefits, and investors should not make decisions based solely on media influence. Thorough research is essential before investing in highly speculative assets like WATER.
Related news: Is Watercoin Another Rugpull Memecoin Project?
