From failed memecoin stunts and the intentional rug pulls of the teenager on Pump.fun to the fake FBI token, 2024 has not disappointed anyone.
While 2024 may be remembered as the year of cryptocurrency maturation, with spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds launched in the U.S. and the industry gaining support from once-skeptical politicians, don't be fooled — the strange and crazy world of cryptocurrency is not going away.
Here are some of the craziest cryptocurrency stories of 2024.
The FBI created its own shitcoin.
In May, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) created a fake token related to AI to catch scammers involved in market manipulation.
The "trap token," NexFundAI (NEXF), was designed to act as bait, targeting participants in fraudulent cryptocurrency activities, particularly pump-and-dump schemes.
The FBI, posing as a scammer, told traders that they wanted help manipulating the trading volume of the token to deceive investors into believing that NEXF was more popular than it actually was.
At least 18 people have been charged in the FBI's sweep.
Rikka Law's managing partner, Charlyn Ho, told Cointelegraph that the FBI may have violated copyright because the source code they used was not licensed.
But the FBI might be fine if sued because the MIT license they used is "designed broadly to give people rights to use software widely."
The TruthOrDare developer self-immolated.
There is a reason why the craziest stunts should be left to professionals.
During the disastrous live stream on May 22, memecoin developer TruthOrDare (DARE) Mikol had friends douse him with isopropyl alcohol and shoot fireworks at him to attract attention for his memecoin.
The end result was that he suffered third-degree burns to his face and body, had to stay in the hospital for several days, and faced a huge medical bill.
The live stream quickly turned chaotic as Mikol was hit by a barrage of fireworks, causing him to catch fire while screaming in pain. Another person then told the cameraman to "stop filming and start helping."
However, this stunt attracted the attention of several memecoin traders, pushing DARE's market cap above $370,000 within hours, DEX Screener data showed. It peaked at $450,000 after about two weeks but has since dropped below $50,000.
Over $3,000 has been donated from a GoFundMe fundraising campaign to help Mikol pay his medical bills.
Mikol said he no longer performs TruthOrDare stunts to make memecoin money but instead focuses on improving himself and his relationship with God.
“I just want to get out of the trenches like you. I just want to be happy and successful,” Mikol posted on X on October 4.
The 13-year-old rug pull was live-streamed, but the resellers got the last laugh.
Gen Z memecoin Quant (QUANT), based on Solana, surged to a market cap of $70 million right after its creator, just 13 years old, seemingly withdrew the token from the live streaming feature of Pump.fun.
This student sold his entire 51 million QUANT tokens for about $30,000 while celebrating on November 20 when the token plummeted.
But other traders had the last laugh, bringing the coin back from the dead and making massive profits from a nearly 77,000% price increase while the 13-year-old was left with his paltry assets.
A trader made a profit of 2,141x, worth nearly $1 million from their QUANT investment.
DEXScreener data showed that QUANT skyrocketed to a high of $0.08 on November 21 with a market cap of over $70 million but then fell below $1 million as the novelty wore off.
It doesn't stop there.
Later, this kid created another coin called “Sorry” and reportedly sold those coins again, making over $20,000.
Justin Sun of Tron eats a $6 million banana stuck to the wall.
Tron founder Justin Sun paid $6.2 million at an auction in New York for a piece of art consisting of a banana stuck to a wall in November — and he has eaten it since.
“I bought the banana,” Sun wrote on X on November 21. “This is not just a piece of art; it represents a cultural phenomenon connecting the art world, memes, and the cryptocurrency community.”
Sun peeled the banana and took the first bite in front of an audience on November 29, revealing that it had quite a unique flavor:
“To be honest, a banana with such a story will naturally taste different from an ordinary banana.”
French baguette or Monero: The hackers left Schneider Electric with two options.
The Hellcat crime organization showcased its humorous side when it attacked electronics company Schneider Electric in November and demanded a ransom of $125,000 through one of two options: $125,000 in Monero coins or $125,000 in delicious French bread.
According to a screenshot taken by Cyberscoop from Hellcat's now-inactive Tor-based site, Hellcat stated: "To ensure the deletion of this data and prevent the public disclosure of data, we demand payment of $125,000 in Baguettes."
“Failing to meet this demand will lead to the dissemination of compromised information.”
However, later on, Hellcat seemingly requested payment in Monero, a privacy-focused coin, which Picus Security researcher Hüseyin Can Yuceel said Hellcat might actually want to be paid in.
Related: The 9 strangest cryptocurrency projects, from Dentacoin to Cthulu.
“Ransomware is a business model, and we can consider this strange demand for baguette bread as a marketing stunt,” Can Yuceel said in Forbes' November 6 report.
Can Yuceel added: “[Hellcat] is trying to attract attention and build trust with future victims and accomplices to carry out a ransomware operation as a service.”
Schneider Electric did not respond to Cointelegraph's inquiry about whether they would pay the ransom.
Other crazy things happened in 2024.
A cryptocurrency user spent a whopping $90,000 for an Ether worth $2,000.
transfer, while many in the cryptocurrency space have shifted their anger from X to the boxing ring.
One of the more famous fights was with Ben “BitBoy” Armstrong, who defeated “More Light” — the creator of the memecoin HarryPotterObamaSonic10Inu — in February. He then fought another influencer in the cryptocurrency space, Ansem, on December 6 in Dubai, with the match ending in a tie.
Infinex founder Kain Warwick and co-owner of Bankless David Hoffmann also fought, with the win going to Hoffman by unanimous decision.