Baby Shark Token Plummets 90% After Pinkfong’s No Affiliation Announcement
A “Baby Shark” token that gained attention last week for being the official representation of the most viewed video on YouTube saw a drastic decline of 90% after the issuing platform revealed that the company behind the memecoin failed to have the necessary authority for its creation.
The token dropped to below 0.064 cents from its previous Tuesday high of 35 cents on Story Protocol, a layer-1 blockchain focused on intellectual property. This slump came after the brand owner, Seoul-based Pinkfong Co., released a formal notice on X on Friday, stating that the token had “no affiliation whatsoever” with the company.
More About Baby Shark Token
“Baby Shark,” a two-minute animated song targeted at young children, has amassed over 16 billion views since its launch in 2016. At its peak, the token achieved a market cap of $200 million and was released through IP. World, which claimed it relied on erroneous rights provided by a Pinkfong licensee. The company stated that its verification process prevented creator fees from being distributed.
IP. World commented, “We, and the community, had every reason to believe the launch was fully authorized.”
In its announcement, Pinkfong mentioned that only two assets — a Baby Shark Meme on Solana and the Baby Shark Universe Token on BNB Chain — are officially recognized by the company.
This statement did little to assuage traders who had invested in the token under the belief that it was an official Pinkfong collaboration, a notion that was bolstered by influencer endorsements and the promotional efforts of Story Protocol.
In a related report, blockchain analytics firm Bubblemaps indicated that at least one entity redirected funds through several new wallets to acquire $10 million worth of tokens within the first minute of trading, amounting to approximately 7% of the token’s supply from its issuance on September 23rd.
While IP. World identified the licensee involved, CoinDesk has opted not to disclose the name, as it has been unable to reach the company for comments.
