$LAPTOP Launch Leaves Traders Reeling as Hunter Biden's Meme Coin Sinks to New Lows

Hunter Biden, son of former US President Joe Biden, launched his own meme coin called $LAPTOP, which quickly became one of the most talked-about tokens in crypto. Despite its lofty valuation of over $144 billion on a liquidity pool of just $48,000, many traders lost money as the price swung violently.

About 80% of traders who bought into $LAPTOP ended up losing money, with two wallets down between $100,000 and $1 million each. Meanwhile, a handful of traders and at least one prominent market maker walked away with substantial profits.

Biden acknowledged the skepticism surrounding meme coins, drawing a comparison to Donald Trump's token $TRUMP, which has lost its investors nearly $3.8 billion. He claimed his own project would work differently, with 20% of $LAPTOP's supply to be airdropped to the community and 30% tied to real-world outcomes.

A market maker, Wintermute, was caught selling $LAPTOP tokens on-chain almost immediately after launch, adding to the chaos. Despite the overwhelming majority of traders losing money, some walked away with significant gains, including one trader who turned a six-figure profit into over $1 million.