Hunter Biden says the crypto industry remains “hostage” to President Donald Trump, even as he defends his own Laptop Token memecoin launch against accusations of hypocrisy.
Why Biden Launched His Own Memecoin
Biden told The Wolf Of All Streets podcast Thursday that watching the Trump family’s crypto ventures convinced him to build something deliberately different, a token designed around transparency rather than what he called “pure max extraction.”
He said only 10% of Laptop Token’s supply went to him personally, with another 20% split between two trusted partners, far below the roughly 80% insider allocation he associates with Trump-linked tokens.
The token’s structure includes a built-in prediction market tied to real-world outcomes, along with a dedicated charitable pool equal to at least 5% of total token value over a two-year period.
Biden said the whole project was meant to reclaim the “Hunter Biden’s laptop” narrative that generated what he estimated as more than $9 billion in media attention over the past several years.
What Went Wrong at Launch
Biden said the launch ran into trouble after Coinbase pulled out of a planned listing following social media backlash. He said the backlash came during a 48-hour announcement period required before the listing.
That left the token launching on decentralized exchanges with too little liquidity to support stable trading.
According to Biden, one of the two market makers hired to support the launch provided just $5,000 and roughly 29,000 tokens, far less than he said was needed.
With so little liquidity, the token’s price surged, briefly pushing its fully diluted valuation to $317 billion within two minutes before crashing. Biden called that figure “total fiction,” saying it did not represent actual money invested in the token.
He estimated retail investors lost less than $3 million during the price swings—roughly the same amount he claimed the two market makers walked away with.
Why Biden Blames Politics, Not the Industry
Biden argued Trump’s personal crypto dealings, including a memecoin launched days before his second inauguration and the family’s involvement in World Liberty Financial (CRYPTO: WLFI), directly contributed to the Clarity Act’s failure in Congress.
He said ethics provisions tied to Trump’s own crypto holdings became the sticking point blocking broader legislation the industry needs.
He pushed back against Democrats who remain skeptical of crypto, arguing the technology aligns with progressive values like banking the unbanked and reducing reliance on remittance services that charge high fees.
Biden named Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) specifically, saying he respects her but doesn’t understand the party’s broader opposition to an industry built around financial inclusion.
Moreover, he hopes Laptop Token’s value climbs from its current roughly 8 cents toward 10 cents over time, with proceeds eventually funding charitable work tied to addiction recovery.
Photo via Shutterstock
Recent Comments