Memecoin inspired by JD Vance's pet dog draws red flag from analysts

Blockchain analytics platform BubbleMaps has raised serious concerns about potential insider manipulation in the Atlas token, a memecoin inspired by Vice President JD Vance’s pet dog, after the cryptocurrency was promoted to hundreds of thousands of followers by the influential account Whale Insider.

Most influencer-driven memecoin launches have turned out to be rug pull scam projects, while a few have burned out. Despite the daily churn of memes, crypto influencers still have a lot of pull when it comes to pushing narratives and directing investors to projects. 

That was the case with Atlas token, reportedly promoted by Whale Insider.

BubbleMaps revealed that 68 wallets with coordinated behavior patterns now control nearly half of the token’s supply, valued at roughly $1 million.

On December 26, Whale Insider posted to its more than 625,000 followers that the Atlas token had risen 100% in the previous 24 hours. However, BubbleMaps’ subsequent analysis uncovered what the analytics firm described as a “heavily bundled” token launch with hallmarks of insider coordination.

Is the Atlas meme controlled by insiders? 

According to BubbleMaps, the 68 suspicious wallets were funded through ChangeNow, a non-custodial cryptocurrency exchange that does not require know-your-customer verification for most transactions.

The wallets exhibited signs of coordinated control, including no prior on-chain activity before the Atlas launch; they were funded within tight time windows, received similar amounts of ETH, and sniped the token by purchasing immediately at launch.

These wallets reportedly hold 47% of the Atlas supply, raising concerns about potential price manipulation and coordinated selling that could harm retail investors who bought the token based on Whale Insider’s promotion.

BubbleMaps calls out pattern of influencer-promoted launches 

ZachXBT, a crypto scam investigator and advisor at Paradigm, has over the years exposed crypto influencers who get paid to promote crypto projects, such as memecoins, but fail to disclose that the promotional posts are advertisements. 

BubbleMaps’ post could be implying that the Atlas post by the Whale Insider account may be one of such instances where influencers promote newly launched tokens without disclosure of insider holdings or coordinated launch tactics.

This was not the first time BubbleMaps called out Whale Insider for promoting controversial tokens.

The memecoin market experienced explosive growth in 2024, especially with memecoin launchpads like Pump.fun gaining traction and making memecoin launches seamless. However, this growth has also come with more scams and projects that ended as rug pulls. 

Influencers, including celebrity musicians, artists, and politicians, have also launched memecoins that have crashed, leaving investors at a loss. 

Earlier this year, tokens such as TRUMP and MELANIA were launched by individuals reportedly associated with the President of the United States and the First Lady, all of which came crashing within a week or two after launch. 

Argentine President Javier Milei promoted the LIBRA token, which turned out to be a scam.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has previously taken action against celebrity promoters who failed to disclose payments for endorsing cryptocurrency investments.

However, the same SEC posted in February 2025 that “a meme coin does not constitute any of the common financial instruments specifically enumerated in the definition of ‘security,’” adding that “neither meme coin purchasers nor holders are protected by the federal securities laws.”

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