Haliey Welch has addressed fans for the first time in weeks following the dramatic collapse of her cryptocurrency venture, $HAWK Token.
The 22-year-old social media personality - better known as the “Hawk Tuah Girl” - went viral earlier this year after appearing in an interview during a night out with friends.
When asked to reveal one thing that could drive a man wild in the bedroom, Welch quipped: “You gotta give it that hawk tuah, and spit on that thing.”
The raunchy catchphrase spawned a showbiz career for Welch, who now hosts the popular Talk Tuah podcast.
While 2024 was a breakthrough year for Haliey, it has also brought significant challenges, as Welch faced controversy surrounding her involvement in cryptocurrency.
The podcast host launched her meme coin, $HAWK, hoping to capitalize on her online fame. Later, she described the venture as "a good way to interact with [her] fans".
Inspired by internet trends, Meme coins have become a volatile force in the cryptocurrency market.
The initial surge in $HAWK's value, reaching a $490 million market cap within hours, quickly turned sour. Within three hours, the coin's value plummeted by a staggering 91%, according to CoinTelegraph.
This dramatic crash has fueled accusations from fans and investors that Hailey orchestrated a "rug pull" - a fraudulent scheme in the cryptocurrency world where developers abandon a project after raising funds from investors. This leaves them with worthless tokens or NFTs and the developers with the funds they raised.
Many fans took to X to complain about their alleged losses. Some people claimed to have lost their "life savings", while others called for legal action to be taken against the star.
On Thursday (December 19), a lawsuit was filed by investors in the U.S. District Court in New York against the $HAWK creators, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Filed by investors, it accuses overHere Ltd., its founder, Clinton So, and social media influencer, Alex Larson Schultz, as well as the Tuah The Moon Foundation of unlawfully promoting and selling unregistered cryptocurrency.
After two weeks of silence, Welch took to her X platform to voice her commitment to helping those who have lost money. “I take this situation extremely seriously and want to address my fans, the investors who have been affected, and the broader community," she penned on X.
"I am fully cooperating with and am committed to assisting the legal team representing the individuals impacted, as well as to help uncover the truth, hold the responsible parties accountable, and resolve this matter,” she continued. “If you have experienced losses related to this, please contact Burwick Law using the link below.”
Welch has maintained she did not have an active role in the $HAWK coin rollout.
Read her post below:Despite her prominent role in promoting the cryptocurrency to her 2.6 million Instagram followers and podcast audience, the 22-year-old was not a named defendant in the lawsuit.
Welch had initially described the venture as a good way to interact with her fans.
Billionaire investor Mark Cuban has stepped in to defend the young creator in recent days, telling The Washington Post‘s Jules Terpak: “It wasn’t something she fully understood. But she trusted the people around her,” cited by The Independent.
Both overHere and So have denied wrongdoing, and defended Welch. “We have been extremely transparent about the limited scope and extent of our involvement in the Hawk Tuah token project," a spokesperson told Daily Mail. "We are confident that we have done nothing wrong."
