On March 11, the X account (formerly Twitter) of Ben Chow, co-founder of the Solana-based protocol Meteora, was hacked, posting a tweet accusing multiple memecoin projects of “parasitic fund extraction,” causing a stir in the crypto community. The tweet directly targeted the development team behind memecoins such as Libra (LIBRA), Melania Meme (MELANIA), and Official Trump (TRUMP), claiming that DefiTuna founders Vlad Pozniakov and Dhirk were “maximizing fund extraction” through token launches, which led to Ben Chow’s resignation. Meteora’s official account quickly responded, stating that both Chow’s and the company’s accounts had been compromised, urging users to avoid clicking on suspicious links. The controversial tweet has since been deleted.
The core of the controversy revolves around trust issues within the memecoin ecosystem. In the “official statement” posted by the hacked account, Ben Chow, identifying himself as a “long-time Solana builder,” lamented, “I resigned because I was too trusting of the parasitic nature of the memecoin space.” The post also included alleged screenshots of WhatsApp conversations among DefiTuna team members discussing how to “maximize extraction” through memecoins like MATES. Although the authenticity of the conversations remains unverified, the term “parasitic memecoin” quickly became a focal point of discussion. Analysts pointed out that such incidents expose the potential risks of profit-driven collusion between memecoin projects and platforms.
The incident escalated further into the political arena. Argentine President Javier Milei faced “rug pull” allegations after endorsing the Solana-based memecoin project Libra (LIBRA), whose market value skyrocketed from near zero to $5 billion before crashing, resulting in significant investor losses. While Milei dismissed the allegations under the guise of his “free-market philosophy,” Congress has initiated impeachment proceedings. In the Meteora hacking incident, Libra was once again listed as a controversial memecoin, highlighting the dual vulnerabilities of such tokens in speculative frenzies and political gambits.
Meteora’s new CEO, Zen, confirmed that the company’s official account was also hacked, and the team has since reset permissions and enhanced verification. However, the trust deficit within the memecoin ecosystem may not be easily repaired. From Solana to Argentine politics, the speculative nature of memecoins and the regulatory vacuum are fueling a chain of crises. The industry is calling for more transparent issuance mechanisms, but with the prevalence of anonymity and the lure of massive profits, parasitic memecoins are likely to continue operating in the gray zone.
