Crypto: LAPTOP plunges 98%, trader loses $199,000

Hunter Biden’s LAPTOP memecoin lost as much as 98% of its value just minutes after launch, leaving some traders with six-figure losses. One wallet analyzed by Nansen shows approximately $199,000 in losses, while another buyer is down $118,000. The project team rejects allegations of insider involvement and instead blames sniper bots and insufficient liquidity at launch.

Crypto: Bots send LAPTOP soaring before its collapse

The crash came barely a day after an already tense launch. Bref Crypto had reported even before trading opened that the LAPTOP memecoin was drawing criticism and several parties were distancing themselves from it, notably Kraken and Base representatives.

The token was initially expected to enter the market at $0.05. According to the explanation published directly by the LAPTOP team, the liquidity available in the first pool was too low to meet demand.

Sniper bots did the rest. These programs automatically monitor new tokens and can buy within seconds of a pool opening, well before most users. LAPTOP’s price consequently surged before collapsing almost immediately.

The project now says it will add 4 million tokens, or 0.4% of the total supply, to strengthen liquidity in Aerodrome pools.

One wallet loses nearly $199,000

Data provided by Nansen offers a measure of the damage.

Over 24 hours, the blockchain analytics firm recorded 46,675 buy transactions versus 16,038 sales, from 20,085 buyers and 8,714 sellers. A large proportion of investors had therefore still not sold after the crash.

Among five wallets examined, one trader showed approximately $199,000 in total losses, including $171,000 in realized losses. Another wallet that bought approximately 28,400 LAPTOP without selling it was down nearly $118,000.

This volatility is broadly consistent with the risks already observed in memecoins: the reported market capitalization can become misleading when only a small quantity of tokens is actually available on the market. Bref Crypto noted that speculative narratives can still move millions before fading very quickly.

Founders deny any insider advantage

However, the LAPTOP team disputes the idea that the launch was structured to benefit insiders.

It says there was no presale and no allocation reserved for investors, influencers or KOLs. The contract address, token distribution, a security audit and other documents had been published before trading began.

The 30% of the supply reserved for the founders would remain locked for six months before vesting gradually over two years. The project also plans to quickly burn 10 million LAPTOP, or 1% of the total supply, after two conditions set out in its prediction mechanism are met.

That does not change what happened in the market. A token launched at a few cents reached spectacular valuations before losing almost all of its value within minutes.

LAPTOP was intended to turn a political controversy into a crypto asset. For its first buyers, its launch mainly provided a stark demonstration of what low liquidity, automated bots and memecoin speculation can produce when they converge at the same time.

This episode is a reminder of why some professionals still equate memecoins with pure gambling.