On-chain researcher ZachXBT has accused crypto influencer Sion Thomas (Ansem) of engaging in Pump & Dump schemes with meme tokens. Specifically, Thomas promoted low-market-cap coins on the Solana platform, which sparked backlash within the crypto community.

It’s definitely the guy who blew up his fund in March 2020 with his own token down 80% in past year and pivoted to promoting pump and dumps.
— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) October 5, 2024

ZachXBT first drew attention to Ansem’s actions in the comments following Murad Mahmudov’s speech at the Token 2049 conference, where the “supercycle” of meme coins was discussed. Mahmudov, formerly with Adaptive Capital, lost credibility after the 2020 crypto market crash.

“If you promote low-cap meme coins to your followers, it speaks to your lack of success,” noted ZachXBT.

Thomas responded, claiming his recommendations were more profitable than traditional utility tokens like Chainlink (LINK). However, ZachXBT pointed out that many of the tokens promoted by Thomas, such as BODEN, HOBBES, ZEUS, and WYNN, had lost between 98% and 99% of their value, which the expert believes negatively affects the crypto community and its long-term goals.

Community Reaction

Crypto community members largely supported ZachXBT’s stance, accusing Thomas of using his followers as liquidity to exit projects.

“You promote shitcoins and use your followers as liquidity to exit,” wrote one user.

Many commentators agreed, pointing out the potential risks for retail investors. In his defense, Thomas reminded everyone of his successful recommendations in other projects, including Cosmos, DFK, and Solana at various times.

Conclusion

This conflict highlights disagreements in the crypto community about the ethics of promoting low-cap tokens. ZachXBT and other advocates of long-term investments argue that such schemes harm the industry. Notably, billionaire Mark Cuban previously referred to all meme coins as potential scams, supporting ZachXBT’s view on such risks.