Hunter Biden's LAPTOP Crypto Token Surges and Crashes 99% in Minutes

The LAPTOP cryptocurrency, launched on the Base network and associated with Hunter Biden, son of former US President Joe Biden, experienced extreme volatility on Wednesday. Shortly after trading began, the price surged to over $300 per coin before crashing by more than 99% within minutes.

At its brief peak, the token recorded a market capitalization of about $110 billion, momentarily making it one of the largest crypto assets in the world on paper. However, this valuation was extremely short-lived, and limited market liquidity made it difficult for investors to turn the numbers on the screen into real money.

The Airdrop Drama

Even greater drama surrounded those who received the token for free. As part of an airdrop, about 10% of the initial supply was allocated to subscribers of Biden's Substack, entitling them to 4,276 LAPTOP coins each. At the peak of about $300 per coin, the allocation appeared to be worth nearly $1.3 million per person.

"When hundreds or thousands of holders try to sell an asset with limited liquidity, the price can plummet rapidly."

Hours later, as the coin traded around $2, that same allocation was worth only about $8,000. According to Bubblemaps, more than 80% of wallets that purchased the token after launch were at a loss.

Meme Coin Reality

LAPTOP was built from the start as more than a joke coin. Biden presented it as a symbol of "resilience, redemption, and recovery," following the laptop scandal that made him a central figure in US political controversy. 20% of the supply was earmarked for community distributions, including 2% for traders who lost money on Donald Trump's TRUMP coin.

An additional 30% was allocated to founders, including Biden, but is locked for a period and not meant to be released immediately. Another 30% is tied to political and public events: depending on their outcomes, the coins may be burned or donated.