Embattled Hawk Tuah star Haliey Welch is looking forward to clearing her name and resuming her career amid the fallout from her cryptocurrency scandal and lawsuit.
The group behind the social media star’s memecoin — which dramatically crashed just hours after launch — is being sued for failing to register the cryptocurrency, court records show.
Although Welch herself is not named in the lawsuit, the backlash she received after the crypto crash caused her to disappear from the public eye for more than two weeks.
“Haliey understands how her unexpected start in the industry may come across, but since going viral she has proven she has the star power to lead a successful career,” a source told DailyMail.com
“She plans to continue after clearing up the story surrounding her involvement in this project,” they continued.
The influencer has teamed up with Burwick Law, which specializes in crypto litigation, “to help uncover the truth, hold responsible parties accountable and resolve this matter.”
The source also emphasizes that Welch “did not lead or create” the crypto project, and was nothing more than a paid spokesperson who received a sponsorship fee to lend her persona to the team that created and launched the $HAWK memecoin.
“Beyond the initial flat fee received before launch, there was no guarantee that she would make any more money from the memecoin afterwards,” the source said.
Controversial Hawk Tuah star Haliey Welch looks forward to clearing her name and resuming her career amid fallout from her cryptocurrency scandal and lawsuit
The group behind the social media star’s memecoin is being sued for failing to register the cryptocurrency and Welch has received extreme backlash from fans online over the issue
“Because of her limited role, Haliey was completely isolated from this project and had no control over it. This was due to receiving incorrect advice from the company responsible for launching the coin, which wanted to capitalize on its viral success,” she added.
When contacted by DailyMail.com for comment, Welch said she was “committed” to solving the problem.
“I take this situation extremely seriously and want to speak to my fans, the investors who have been affected, and the broader community,” she said.
“I am fully cooperating with and committed to assisting the legal team representing the affected individuals, and to help expose the truth, hold the responsible parties accountable and resolve this matter.”
The lawsuit, filed by investors, accuses overHere Ltd., its founder Clinton So, and social media influencer Alex Larson Schultz, as well as the Tuah The Moon Foundation, of unlawfully promoting and selling cryptocurrency that was allegedly never properly registered.
Memecoins, which rely on cultural references and online fandoms to gain traction, are accessible and have a low barrier to creation, investors said, adding that Welch’s “frenzied” marketing of the token further broadened its appeal.
Dubbed a “$HAWK token,” the coin quickly rose to a market cap of $490 million before ultimately plummeting more than 90 percent to below $100 million within hours of its launch on December 4.
Now, the plaintiff’s attorneys claim that a pre-sale for the coin had raised approximately $2.8 million, at a value of $16.69 million, prior to the launch date, according to the lawsuit.
“Since going viral, she has proven she has the star power to lead a successful career,” a source told DailyMail.com
“She plans to continue after she clears up the story surrounding her involvement in this project,” they continued
Investors are now seeking damages of more than $150,000.
Thursday’s complaint also alleges that So — who initially launched the coin — created the Tuah Foundation into an offshore entity the day after the failed launch and sold 17 percent of the tokens through the organization to a subset of people to avoid securities laws to circumvent.
However, the defendants continued to market the remaining 83 percent of the tokens, making “no serious attempt” to restrict buyers outside the US.
“The project was clearly intended to take advantage of the U.S. market,” the complaint said.
By “tying together the success of a social media influencer like Welch, he literally said that the token holders would essentially be shareholders,” the investors said.
“Despite these clear indications of its status as a security, the $HAWK token was not registered by Defendants,” she added.
“We have been extremely transparent about the limited scope and scale of our involvement in the Hawk Tuah token project. We are confident that we have done nothing wrong,” an overHere spokesperson said in an email.
“As for any lawsuit, we will allow the process to proceed in court.”
Dubbed a “$HAWK token,” the coin quickly rose to a market cap of a whopping $490 million before ultimately plummeting more than 90 percent within hours of its launch on December 4.
The failed memecoin is inspired by the internet celebrity who was thrust into the spotlight earlier this year after making a cheeky comment during a TikTok video that went viral
Welch has since faced harsh backlash online as critics accused the 22-year-old and her team of taking part in the “money heist” scheme, which she later denied on X.
This hasn’t stopped angry fans and investors from blasting Welch on social media.
“You really messed up that ‘pump and dump’ memecoin,” one person wrote.
“I’m sorry but anyone who took financial cues from HAWK TUAH GIRL deserves the L they took,” another wrote.
“If you bought a Hawk Tuah coin you shouldn’t be allowed to vote,” a third commented.
New York-based law firm Burwick Law, which specializes in NFTs and cryptocurrency cases, put out a call earlier this month for potential clients involved in the $HAWK coin scandal.
“If you have lost money on $HAWK, please contact our company to learn more about your legal rights,” they posted on X.
DailyMail.com contacted Welch’s management for comment at the time.
Welch’s Talk Tuah podcast has also become one of the most popular in the country, at one point ranking third in the US behind Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan.
Speaking to Fortune before the memecoin’s launch, Welch emphasized that the venture was “not just a cash grab.”
She also said that crypto was “a good way to communicate with my fans” and that she became interested in it through rapper Lil Pump.
Welch first showed interest in crypto in September, when she bizarrely appeared as a keynote speaker at Forbes Korea Blockchain Week in Seoul, South Korea.
The Tennessee-born blonde rose to fame in June after a clip of her giving a humorous sex tip during a street interview in Nashville went viral.
Since then, she has amassed millions of followers on social media and launched a successful merchandise line.
Her Talk Tuah podcast has also become one of the most popular in the country, at one point ranking third in the US, behind Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan.
Guests on the podcast so far have included comedians like Hannah Berner and Whitney Cummings, pop star JoJo Siwa and entrepreneur Mark Cuban.