Every coin this CEO creates dies, will this play-to-earn be different?

Integrated blockchain gaming and entertainment platform Catheon this week announced the release of its $CATHEON token, a replacement for its $CHICKS token that was tied to the NFT-based play-to-earn (P2E) game SolChicks, which faked fanbase numbers earlier this year. 

Catheon styles itself as the leading ecosystem for web3 games. However, despite these big claims and the fact that it’s hitched itself firmly to the play-to-earn hype wagon, potential investors are being urged to stay away and users on Twitter have denounced the project as an empire built on scams.

Read more: Venture capitalists hate gaming but love play-to-earn token prices

Much of the criticism is being leveled at the project’s CEO, William Wu. He’s been involved in four separate crypto projects since May 2021, namely CatzCoin, HoneyX, SolChicks, and now Catheon but users claim he’s garnered a reputation for rug pulls. 

One of Wu’s most vocal critics is Twitter user @gonzocomander, who said: “He embezzled millions of dollars he collected from us. He is a thief. He is getting ready to cheat again with his new project.” He even compared Wu to controversial Terra founder Do Kwon. 

Meanwhile, @Hodlology tagged crypto sleuth @FatManTerra with their concerns, saying, “please don’t ignore this scammer. William Wu has always been at the forefront of many scam and rug pull projects.  He embezzled millions of dollars he collected from thousands of people.”

Catzcoin

Wu’s first crypto project, started in May 2021, was a dogecoin-esque affair meant to capitalize on the dog coin’s immense hype. It was supposed to donate 5% of the coin’s supply to cat charities. 

Wu was a co-founder of CatzCoin but left the project to “focus on something with greater utility.” The token’s price hit highs of $0.00024402 in May last year but has since dropped by nearly 99%. SolChicks released a statement claiming that Wu hadn’t sold his Catzcoin holdings and that the plummeting price was in fact due to bitcoin’s simultaneous price drop.

HoneyX

Wu’s second project, HoneyX, launched in mid-2021 and was billed as a platform that would “change the way adult content is consumed” by “supporting revenue distribution in favor of content creators, freedom of expression & privacy protection.” The website is no longer available, but promo material showcasing the platform’s NSFW coin still exists. 

As per a SolChicks statement, Wu didn’t sell any holdings of HoneyX, but he did leave the project when the prices were at their highest in late august 2021.

Read more: ‘A slow rug pull’: Traders reject play-to-earn crypto shilled by Ice Cube

SolChicks

Then comes SolChicks. Launched in September 2021 and with Wu once again at the helm, it was billed as a multiplayer role-playing game where players could collect “adorable” NFT poultry that they would use to “battle one another for fame and glory.”

The play-to-earn project promised high-caliber artwork and unique and detailed in-game systems, helmed by a “strong-credentialed and experienced team.”

However, the project was subsequently accused of using fake endorsements and artificially hyping its token. One example was an Ice Cube promo created using the personalized celebrity voiceover app, Cameo. 

The project only released 2% of its $CHICK token supply at the time of launch, holding the other 98%. Investors at the time began to withdraw from the project while users accused the team of a slow rug pull.

$CHICK has shed ~99% of its price since last December and is now being rebranded as $CATHEON.

Protos has reached out to William Wu for comment but at the time of publication has not received a reply.

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