PNUT Meme Coin Listings Trigger Potential Litigation

Mark Longo owner of Peanut – the squirrel that rose to national stardom after it was seized and abruptly euthanized by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) – said he will sue all crypto exchanges that list the PNUT meme coin for trademark infringement, in a post on X.

The 34-year-old mechanical engineer turned social media influencer and pornstar, claimed he rescued the rodent after its mother was run over and killed by a car. Longo domesticated Peanut and put him on Instagram where he amassed more than half a million followers (now almost a million), helping steer traffic to Longo’s porn content, according to Vanity Fair.

After complaints from local wildlife rehabilitators, Peanut was seized from Longo’s home by NYSDEC and bit an officer during the seizure, prompting a post-mortem rabies test which would first require euthanization.

The killing of Peanut along with another of Longo’s pets, Fred the raccoon, sparked national outrage, particularly from Trump supporters, who characterized the euthanization as a direct result of government tyranny. Peanut subsequently became even more famous, spawning multiple meme coins, including PNUT which topped $2.27 billion in market capitalization just days after its November launch and was listed on major exchanges such as Binance.

But Longo wasn’t impressed with the exchange’s choice to list the token. “My legal team initiated action against Binance for unauthorized use of my intellectual property, including images and stories featuring my beloved animals,” he wrote on X. “This is the first of multiple cease-and-desist letters to be issued.”

The next target appears to be Coinbase, which also listed the token in question.

“I’m coming for all the money earned from my IP on all exchanges,” Long wrote, “They will ending up having to delist and pay serious [cheddar]”

While some have supported the edgy influencer, others see his legal threats as an opportunistic ploy to earn an undeserved payday.
#binance #wendy #PeanutCoin $PNUT