The Central African Republic (CAR) recently introduced a national meme coin, CAR, announced by President Faustin-Archange Touadéra.
The launch quickly gained attention, not only due to questions surrounding its authenticity but also because a trader reportedly made millions within hours by capitalizing on early market movements following the announcement.
Skepticism Mounts Over CAR Meme Coin
According to the latest findings by Lookonchain, an investor turned $5,000 into over $12 million within three hours by trading the newly launched CAR tokens. The trader purchased 46.57 million CAR for 25 SOL (which is approximately worth $5,000) immediately after President Faustin-Archange Touadéra posted the contract address.
The investor later sold 22.65 million CAR for 8,395 SOL ($1.67 million) while retaining 23.92 million CAR, worth around $10.5 million. The launch of CAR on February 9th has drawn scrutiny, as certain AI-based verification tools initially flagged the president’s video announcement as potentially manipulated.
Some analysts suggested the background appeared AI-generated, though others pointed out that automated detection tools have previously misidentified real videos. Speculation also arose regarding the possibility of the president’s social media account being compromised. However, the original post remains live, which makes this claim uncertain.
Red Flags in CAR Meme Coin Project
Several experts, such as Yokai Ryujin, founder of Unrevealed XYZ, remain unconvinced. In a February 10 post on X, Ryujin also raised concerns about the legitimacy of the meme coin while pointing out that the domain for the project was registered on Namecheap just three days prior, which he argued was not typical of an official government initiative.
The exec warned that investors should be cautious and noted that the president claimed the entire token supply was locked through Streamflow but had the ability to cancel, withdraw, and sell tokens at any time. He flagged the project as suspicious while highlighting that the coin was launched at 1 a.m. Central African Time.
Following his warning, he reported that developers allegedly canceled the original Streamflow contract, moved the tokens back to their wallets, and then created a new contract while failing to lock the promised amounts. According to Ryujin, they retained approximately $17 million worth of tokens – an amount he suggested could fully drain the project’s $3 million liquidity.
He advised investors to remain cautious and avoid being misled by these changes. Shortly after his posts, Namecheap confirmed the suspension of the project’s domain which has further added to the skepticism around the legitimacy of CAR.
Meme coins continued to dominate the industry despite pushback as these tokens evolved from internet culture, viral moments, and political figures. Governments are now using them for strategic messaging. In the US, for instance, President Donald Trump’s pre-inauguration meme coin drew scrutiny.
