A group of GameStop-inspired memecoins plunged as much as 31% on Friday as meme stock darling “Roaring Kitty” went live for the first time in three years.
Keith Gill, who rose to fame in 2021 by sparking a retail frenzy that sent prices of stocks like GameStop and AMC skyrocketing, shared his GameStop positions in a 45-minute stream watched by more than 600,000 viewers.
By the end of the live stream, memecoins GME and ROAR were down about 24% and 31%, respectively, compared to their prices right before the event, according to CoinGecko price data. Meanwhile, KITTY prices plummeted about 17% across live streams.
All three memecoins recorded triple-digit gains in overnight trading.
No memecoin is officially affiliated with Roaring Kitty. GME is a Solana-based memecoin that uses the same ticker symbol as GameStop’s stock, but has no official affiliation with the video game retailer.
GameStop’s NYSE-traded shares were down 40% at the time of publication.
Critics claim the influencers’ high-profile live streams manipulate the stock market and violate federal securities laws. Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal reported that E*Trade was considering telling Gill he could no longer use its platform amid growing concerns about potential stock price manipulation.
The entire cryptocurrency market was also under selling pressure on Friday afternoon. Bitcoin fell 2.7% to $69,071.36, according to price data from The Block.
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About the author
Elizabeth Napolitano is a data reporter covering business and technology news with a focus on cryptocurrency. Before she joined The Block, Elizabeth reported on BigTech, AI, cryptocurrency, and video games for CBS Moneywatch. As a CoinDesk reporter, she covered DeFi, NFTs, and US courts. She received a master’s degree in journalism from CUNY. X: Follow her at @LizKNapolitano.