Eric Adams–linked NYC token crashed after peaking near a $600M market cap, following allegations of liquidity extraction. On-chain data shows a deployer-linked wallet removed $2.43M USDC, added back $1.5M, leaving ~$932K unexplained as price fell over 80%.

NYC Token, a newly launched Solana meme coin promoted by former New York City mayor Eric Adams, surged to a peak on-chain market cap of around $580–600 million shortly after launch before crashing more than 80% amid allegations of a liquidity “rug pull.” On‑chain analysis showed a wallet linked to the token’s deployer withdrew about $2.43–$2.5 million in USDC liquidity near the price peak, later adding back roughly $1.5 million, leaving around $900,000–$932,000 still unreturned as the token’s price collapsed. NYC Token launched in mid‑January as a New York‑themed meme coin with no official affiliation to the city but heavily associated with Adams, who promoted it on X, in a Times Square event, and on Fox Business while holding physical token-branded props. The project’s website and Adams’ public statements claimed that a portion of proceeds would fund “critical initiatives,” including fighting antisemitism and blockchain education for children, but key details such as partner identities, governance, and precise fund flows were sparse. Shortly after trading began on Solana, the token’s fully diluted valuation spiked before abruptly reversing when a deployer-linked wallet removed millions in USDC from the liquidity pool at or near the top. Blockchain analytics firm Bubblemaps and other on‑chain researchers flagged the liquidity movements as suspicious, highlighting that the protocol used a one-sided liquidity pool structure where users added USDC against a pool initially seeded only with NYC tokens, making subsequent USDC withdrawals from the pool especially impactful on market depth. Analysts and traders on X quickly labeled the episode a potential rug pull—a form of exit or liquidity scam—arguing that removing the “base layer” of liquidity effectively trapped late buyers and accelerated the price crash. The NYC Token team and Adams denied wrongdoing, attributing the withdrawals to a “market maker” rebalancing liquidity and insisting the team did not sell tokens or withdraw profits, but the unexplained shortfall of roughly $900,000–$932,000 and limited transparency around the team’s identities have kept the project under heavy scrutiny and raised broader concerns about celebrity‑driven meme coins and investor protection on Solana and in the U.S. market.

✨ AI-generated background, compiled from web sources — not editorial content.

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