Who Profited from YZY Token? Winners and Losers Data Reveals the Answers

Kanye West’s YZY token has quickly become one of crypto’s most dramatic cautionary tales of 2025. Within hours of its August 21 debut on Solana, the memecoin surged to nearly $3 billion in market capitalization, trading as high as $3.16. Shortly afterward, it collapsed over 80 percent, erasing millions in investor funds.

Bubblemaps data shows more than 60,000 wallets bought YZY, with 83% now in the red.

Losses range widely:

• 51,862 wallets lost between $1 and $1,000

• 5,269 lost $1,000 to $10,000

• 1,025 lost $10,000 to $100,000

• 108 lost $100,000 to $1 million

• and three wallets lost over $1 million.

Only 11 wallets reportedly profited more than $1 million each.

Who’s Really Making Money?

Hayden Davis, also known as Kelsier, was among the top gainers from YZY, reportedly profiting $12 million through early token purchases.

Interestingly, his previously frozen $57.6 million USDC, linked to the 2025 LIBRA collapse, was unfrozen by a U.S. court on August 20, citing no evidence of evasive behavior, irreparable harm, or a high likelihood of losing the case.

Bubblemaps highlighted a striking coincidence: just one day later, on August 21, Kanye West announced the YZY token launch.

Fourteen wallet addresses, which received funds from centralized exchanges within 24 hours before the announcement, were linked via transfers and shared deposits to Davis’s previously known addresses.

These wallets formed a coordinated sniping cluster, ready to buy as soon as YZY went live.

Although it cannot be confirmed whether Davis had insider information or direct contact with the YZY team, the 14 sniping addresses began buying within one minute of the token announcement and collectively earned $12 million. The timing of Davis’s fund release and the rapid activity of these addresses raised eyebrows in the crypto community.

This episode illustrates how, even amid widespread retail losses, a few strategically positioned players can capture outsized profits, underscoring ongoing questions about fairness and transparency in celebrity-driven memecoin launches.

The Aftermath and Lessons

YZY continues trading at around $0.55, with a market capitalization near $166 million, down from its $3 billion peak. Trading volume remains elevated at roughly $38 million over 24 hours, signaling ongoing speculation despite the crash.

The fallout has renewed debate over crypto market manipulation and the lack of safeguards for memecoins. For regulators, YZY may serve as another example of why celebrity endorsements and sudden token launches require scrutiny.

Previously, in an interview with Coffeezilla, Hayden Davis openly acknowledged insider trading, sniping wallets, and market manipulation.

He defended the practice, stating that insiders always benefit in meme coin launches and that this has become an accepted part of the crypto landscape:

“It’s a game. Every KOL. That’s how they make their money. They know about the deal. They agree to the deal, and they make money on the deal. And the people that get mad are people that aren’t insiders.”

Davis compared the meme coin market to an unregulated casino, where retail investors are at a major disadvantage.

In this game, the habitual winners remain the same, while ordinary investors, the so-called loss-making retail, rotate in and out of harm’s way. For investors, the lesson is clear: timing matters, and most end up losing.