This article was originally published on Investingoal and appears here with permission.
Crypto has exploded over the past few years with people making massive returns on investment by investing in assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum as well as digital art projects or NFTs.
When there is money to be made, people flock to the scene, more importantly, celebrities flock to the scene.
All you need to do is look at Twitter and Instagram to realise that being a Crypto Influencer is the new big thing! Everyone from A-list movie actors to YouTubers who have millions of subscribers are promoting cryptocurrency coins and NFT Projects all over their social media.
However, do these celebrity-endorsed projects actually make investors money?
We looked at the top influencers promoting these massive projects to see how they perform post endorsements to answer that exact question.
Kim Kardashian “Not Financially Advising” On EthereumMax
In June of 2021, the multi-millionaire internet sensation Kim Kardashian took to Instagram to share “what her friends told her” about the crypto coin EthereumMax, which is actually just using the Ethereum name and is not at all affiliated with the Ethereum Coin.
Of course, Kim made sure to highlight that this was an ad by adding ‘ #ad’ to the very end of the post.
After the promotion in June, the cryptocurrency shot up in value but crashed the following month. It’s safe to say that Keeping Up With Ethereum Max won’t be airing anytime soon.
Is Gwyneth Paltrow The Face Of Females In Crypto?
The Hollywood actress, who starred in iconic movies such as Se7en, Iron Man and The Talented Mr. Ripley, has always expressed an interest in the business world, especially in recent years with her wellness and lifestyle brand Goop.
Gwyneth has also dipped her toes into the world of NFTs, purchasing a Bored Ape NFT and promoting the World of Women NFT project this year. She also appeared at the BFF crypto summit alongside Mila Kunis and Mark Zuckerberg’s sister Randi to encourage more women to get into crypto and NFTs.
Whilst encouraging more women to get involved in this industry is great, some of the promoted NFT projects are very volatile and unpredictable – maybe people should think twice before taking financial advice from Hollywood stars.
DJ Khaled’s Promoted Crypto Project Sees Co-Founder in Jail
DJ Khaled has never been shy with his social media usage – his Instagram has everything from music promotion to motivational content.
One notable post was his Centra debit card post which promoted Centra Tech, one of the first cryptocurrency card makers to release a co-branded card with VISA, to his 29 Million followers.
Unfortunately, the project did not last long and resulted in investors losing out on a combined $25 million – the Co-founder also got8 years in jail. Perhaps Khaled should stick to making hits.
Elon Musk’s Beloved Dogecoin Stops Short Of The Moon
Tesla CEO and billionaire Elon Musk has always been very active in sharing his views on Twitter and his Crypto views were no exception.
Elon was one of the main reasons why Dogecoin took off in the way it did. His tweets also had a huge effect on already established crypto coins such as Bitcoin.
Turns out that when you have a following of 97 million people you can drive attention to anything fairly easily.
On the other hand, what was not so easy was keeping Dogecoin’s price steady – the self-identified meme coin sure did have a harsh punch line.
Floyd Mayweather Takes A Beating From EthereumMax
During his fight with YouTuber Logan Paul, the undefeated 50-0 boxer advertised EthereumMax on his boxer trunks.
In a later interview, Floyd Mayweather said he made $30 million for the patches on his trunks. However, he did not disclose how much of that was EthereumMax.
After the fight in June, the coin’s value skyrocketed, but that did not last long as it shot back down in July – it might be time to change the boxer’s record to 50-1.
Mark Cuban’s TITANic Crypto Flop
The billionaire entrepreneur, television personality and owner of the Dallas Mavericks was one of many endorsing cryptocurrencies, specifically Titan coin.
Mark Cuban used his blog to explain his position and promote Titan to his followers.
Looking at Titan’s current performance, Mark, and everyone else who invested in the coin, have seen better days – to use a quote from Mark Cuban on Shark Tank: “We’re Out”.
Lana Rhodes Project Tanks Due To…Mean Comments?
The former adult actress and current content creator launched her own NFT project titled ‘Crypto Sis’ in which she promised to work and make this a lucrative investment to all those who invest and back the project.
After the initial mint, $1.5 million got withdrawn from the project and Lana stopped working on the project because, to quote representatives from the Crypto Sis Discord, “she was very shocked/upset by the amount of negative & rude comments she was seeing in the chat”.
Jake Paul promoted a not so sacred NFT
The YouTuber and current boxer’s history is full of controversy, ranging from failed businesses to crypto ventures.
He recently promoted the controversial coin Safemoon, as well as a range of NFT projects including Sacred Devils and Stickdix, to his 4 million followers on Twitter.
Unfortunately, those who invested in those projects all had a similar ROI and Jake Paul is currentlyfacing a lawsuit for his promotion of SafeMoon alongside a group of other influencers.
What else could we expect from the self-proclaimed “Problem Child”?
David Portnoy Joins In The SafeMoon Hype
David Portnoy is an American internet celebrity and founder of the blog Barstool Sports. He was one of many influencers to promote SafeMoon.
He uploaded a video showcasing his support for SafeMoon in which it is unclear whether he is serious about the project or jokingly riding the wave.
This did not stop people from giving in to all the promotions and investing in the coin. However, it is currently headed anywhere but the moon – David might want to find another crypto coin to put on his cap.
Influencers Join Forces To “Save The Kids”
Save the Kids Token, marketed as a charity coin that donates part of the winnings to children charities, was pushed online by massive YouTubers with millions of followers like Ricegum, Faze Kay and Faze Teeqo as well as Instagram Influencers such as Sommer Ray.
Unfortunately, no investors or children profited from the project as it immediately dropped in price. A classic pump and dump if we’ve ever seen one.
What’s Next For Crypto Influencers?
We can’t really predict what the next big thing to promote will be, but what we can predict is if people do not put in the effort to research where they decide to invest their money, we’ll have to make another updated version of this piece in a few years.
If you are thinking about investing your money into anything, be sure to do thorough research into the markets – don’t just jump on a bandwagon because your favourite celebrities have told you to do so – try and take industry experts’ advice instead.
