Martin Shkreli claims to have been behind a Donald Trump memecoin

Martin Shkreli sits at a table, arms crossed and smirkingMartin Shkreli (attribution)
After Arkham Intelligence announced a $150,000 bounty for anyone who could prove the identity of the person behind a Donald Trump memecoin called $DJT, blockchain sleuth zachxbt quickly rose to the occasion. He submitted evidence that Martin Shkreli, the "pharma bro" who spent years in federal prison for financial fraud and who was previously known for hiking the price of an anti-malaria drug 56×, was behind the token. This wouldn't have been Shkreli's first foray into the blockchain world, after he launched a "web3 drug discovery platform", and then later dubiously claimed to have been hacked for over $450,000 after his computer was infected by a trojan after he torrented a porn video.

Shkreli attempted to frontrun the news in a Twitter space, and came out with his own claims that he had collaborated with Barron Trump to create the token, and with Andrew Tate to pump its price. However, fellow felon and memecoin pumper Roger Stone subsequently crawled out of the woodwork to claim that neither Barron nor Donald Trump was involved with $DJT.

Shkreli has yet to provide solid proof that he created the memecoin, though zachxbt's research tends to be very strong. If true, Shkreli faces potential legal repercussions, as he is still on parole after his release in 2022. The terms of his parole require him to "refrain from engaging in self-employment which involves access to client's assets, investments, or money, or solicitation of assets, investments, or money", and to make financial disclosures to the courts. Shkreli was also banned from the securities industry in 2018, as part of a settlement with the SEC.