Iris Coleman
Could 12, 2026 13:43
Solana-based RKC memecoin plunges 67% as developer cashes out $729K. One dealer suffers a $190K loss amid considerations of account compromise.
The Solana-based Crimson Kitten Crew (RKC) memecoin linked to Roaring Kitty’s X account has plummeted 67% after its developer cashed out $729,000. The sudden crash left one dealer nursing a $190,000 loss and raised questions in regards to the legitimacy of the undertaking and the integrity of Keith Gill’s social media account.
The debacle started after Gill’s X account—his first exercise in over 15 months—posted the RKC token’s ticker and contract deal with, sending the token’s market cap skyrocketing to $11 million. The submit was quickly deleted, however not earlier than a frenzy of buying and selling. Based on Dexscreener, RKC’s market capitalization has since fallen to $3.6 million.
Blockchain analytics agency Lookonchain revealed that the developer bought $611,000 price of RKC tokens and earned one other $118,000 in creator charges by way of Pump.enjoyable, bringing the overall exit to $729,000. Lookonchain additionally flagged that 10 wallets linked to the developer bought 39.52% of RKC’s provide earlier than the general public launch, sparking considerations of front-running retail merchants.
One dealer, who reportedly spent $250,000 to amass 31.15 million RKC tokens, bore the brunt of the fallout. After the token’s worth plunged post-deletion of Gill’s X submit, the dealer managed to promote his holdings for simply $62,200, reserving a staggering $188,600 loss in below an hour.
The incident has raised eyebrows over whether or not Gill’s X account was compromised. Roaring Kitty, whose actual identify is Keith Gill, gained notoriety in 2021 for catalyzing the GameStop (GME) brief squeeze, which pitted retail traders in opposition to institutional brief sellers. Cointelegraph has reportedly reached out to Gill to verify if he nonetheless controls the account.
This episode underscores the dangers of celebrity-linked memecoins, the place hype and concentrated provide can result in sharp worth swings and vital losses for retail traders. It additionally highlights the continued challenge of “sniping,” the place creators or insiders dominate token provide at launch, extracting worth from latecomers.
RKC is not the one current instance of memecoin turmoil. The Thriller (MYSTERY) token, which noticed 90 wallets management 90% of its provide at launch, has crashed over 98% from its peak $7.5 million valuation, in line with Dexscreener. Equally, coordinated sniping has been a recurring theme within the memecoin house, as seen with the Broccoli (BROCCOLI) token in 2025, the place a single dealer reportedly profited $28 million.
The RKC crash could function a cautionary story for merchants chasing the subsequent large memecoin. As this market demonstrates again and again, thinly traded tokens with concentrated provide are fertile floor for manipulation and sudden collapses.
Picture supply: Shutterstock
