An obscure memecoin called Bonk Killer (BONKKILLER), based on the Solana blockchain, has managed to achieve the highest market capitalization in the world, reaching a staggering $328 trillion. However, there’s a catch – it’s actually a honeypot scam and holders are unable to sell.
Bonk Killer was launched on April 29 and has seen around $4.6 million in trading volume in the last 24 hours. According to cryptocurrency analytics platform Birdeye, over 90% of the tokens are held by the creator.
Unfortunately, investors quickly discovered that they couldn’t move or sell their tokens after the developer activated a “freeze authority” feature, which prevents token transfers.
Solana-focused news platform SolanaFloor described BONKKILLER as a scam and honeypot token, with a market capitalization surpassing $100 trillion. This action by the developer led to the freezing of token holders’ accounts and prevented token sales.
A honeypot is a type of scam that attracts investors with the promise of high profits but then restricts their ability to sell. In this case, $328 trillion is an astronomical amount, which is 3.28 times more than the global domestic gross product of $100 trillion, according to Worldometer.
Some investors, like nonfungible token enthusiast “thirt13n,” have pointed out that the memecoin isn’t actually backed by such a large amount of fiat currency, and the market capitalization metric becomes meaningless if token holders cannot sell.
Despite warnings from various platforms about the honeypot scam, traders are still buying BONKKILLER tokens, as shown by Birdeye’s data.
Furthermore, the creator has managed to withdraw $1.62 million from victims through 11 transactions, according to on-chain data.
BONKKILLER is just one example of a memecoin rug pull or honeypot scam that deceives unsuspecting users. A recent investigation by Cointelegraph Magazine revealed that one in six memecoins on the Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution Base are scams or exhibit scam-like characteristics. Additionally, 91% of the memecoins analyzed had at least one security vulnerability.
However, it’s worth noting that these vulnerabilities could also stem from a lack of knowledge by the creators about proper security procedures, especially if they launched the token as a joke or to mock the industry.
Fortunately, there are blockchain scam prevention tools available that can detect potential honeypots by conducting real-time smart contract and token analysis.
In conclusion, while Bonk Killer may have achieved an astonishing market capitalization, it’s important for investors to be wary of such memecoins and scams in the cryptocurrency space. Proper research and caution are essential to protect oneself from falling victim to such schemes.