The launch of Kanye West’s YZY token has resulted in significant losses for 105 traders, with individual losses ranging from $100,000 to $1 million, accumulating to a total of $26 million and averaging about $250,000 per wallet.
As per data disclosed by Bubblemaps analysis on Aug. 27, 70,201 traders engaged with the token, leading to 51,862 experiencing losses.
West’s contentious token launch on Solana achieved a market cap of over $3 billion before plummeting by over 90% within a matter of hours.
Analysis shows a significant disparity in results, with only 11 wallets (0.015%) reporting profits surpassing $1 million each, totaling $18.9 million in gains.
The distribution of losses indicates that those with larger positions faced the most substantial impacts. Wallets losing between $10,000 and $100,000 accounted for around $25.4 million, with 917 addresses averaging a loss of $27,700.
Furthermore, 4,244 traders suffered losses ranging from $1,000 to $10,000, with an average loss of $3,000, contributing over $13 million to the total.
At the highest end, three traders each faced losses exceeding $1 million, leading to an overall loss of $5.07 million.
Only 1% of wallets reaped considerable profits
Among the 70,201 traders, just 18,333 achieved profitability, which is 26% of all participants.
However, nearly 86% of this group accrued profits of up to $1,000, amounting to around $1.65 million, with an average profit of $105 for each trader in this segment.
Fewer than 1% (642 wallets) of traders made profits exceeding $10,000, collectively gaining $58.8 million, which constitutes nearly 88% of total profits. Additionally, 88 traders realized profits ranging from $100,000 to $1 million each, totaling $24.9 million.
Several structural factors contributed to the traders’ losses, including a 94% insider-controlled initial supply and high fee structures.
The YZY pool operated with a base fee of 1% that quickly escalated to 2.68%; coupled with slippage costs, this led to an estimated 10% round-trip trading cost for participants.
The YZY trading data highlights the harsh realities of the memecoin market, where significant gains are concentrated among a small elite of traders, frequently insiders or astute token snipers.
