Elon Musk’s temporary name change for X to “Kekius Maximus” sparked a cryptocurrency frenzy, resulting in one trader converting $66 into $3 million in 18 days.
Inspired by a mix of the internet meme Pepe the Frog and the Gladiator movie character Maximus Decimus Meridius, the trader purchased 10.17 million Kekius Maximus (KEKIUS) tokens on December 14. By January 1, the trader had sold a portion of their tokens for 60.3 Ether, resulting in a paper profit of 45,900 times their initial investment.
Turned $66 into $3.05M in just 18 days, a 45,906x return!
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) January 1, 2025
This trader spent 0.017 $ETH($66) to buy 10.17M $KEKIUS and sold 2.81M $KEKIUS for 60.3 $ETH($201K), leaving 7.37M $KEKIUS($2.85M).
The total profit is $3.05M.https://t.co/gx6E6yFQcz pic.twitter.com/rFrsNjCqvt
Following Musk’s name change, the KEKIUS coin’s market capitalization increased to $380 million. Musk’s posts, which featured AI-generated photos of a Pepe-inspired creature fighting in Rome’s historic Colosseum, exacerbated the surge. One of these posts had more than 48 million views on X, accelerating the token’s ascent.
Brothers in Arms pic.twitter.com/vIZ8ADrXbo
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 31, 2024
Similar memecoins launched on Solana failed to reach equal success, highlighting Musk’s unique social media influence.
Musk faced a more serious issue on the same day as the KEKIUS craze, when a Tesla Cybertruck he was associated with exploded outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas. Musk linked the occurrence to fireworks or a bomb, and authorities are examining it as a possible terrorist attack.
This astonishing set of events once again demonstrates the unpredictable junction of social media, cryptocurrencies, and Musk’s effect on market dynamics.
