Another Jake Paul-backed NFT initiative has failed to deliver on its promises and yanked the rug out from under its community, this time to the tune of $6.3 million.
Animoon advertised itself as a play-to-win game with 9,999 programmatically generated Animoon NFTs, claiming to be “the most awaited NFT project.”
Animoon said that its Pokémon-themed NFTs, which cost 0.2 ETH each, were developed in collaboration with official Pokémon partners TopDeck. The project even claimed to have signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with Pokémon themselves.
Animoon enlisted the help of a professional punching bag and serial fraudster Jake Paul to shill the project, which is becoming increasingly customary for NFT cash-ins.
- “I’m just grateful to be a part of this project,” said Paul in a promotional video message to his followers. “I love the designs inspired by Pokémon – the whole nine yards. Me, personally, I’m gonna try and get a Legendary [Animoon] during the public mint, but y’all better not miss this. Be ready for the mint.”
Jake Paul - Animoon Rug pic.twitter.com/1ki3aqpBWp
— Caught In 4k 🎥 (@bestvideosofct) June 2, 2022
Real-world products including trainers and t-shirts were never delivered to investors. Cash rewards for the 15 ‘Legendary’ NFT holders have never been paid out.