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Bubblemaps: Indian developer Sahil Arora made about $30 million in celebrity coins this year

On August 15th, the blockchain data lake visualization platform Bubblemaps released an investigation report, revealing that Indian-born developer Sahil Arora made about $30 million by issuing tokens for celebrities in 2024. The report pointed out that Arora, who lives in Dubai, has issued tokens for many famous people such as Iggy Azalea, Caitlyn Jenner, etc., but most of the projects eventually went to zero. Arora operates through the Pump.fun platform, using his Instagram presence and authentication markers to convince celebrities to tweet about the token address for high pay. He typically holds 25-40% of the token supply and sells it immediately after a celebrity tweet, using celebrity followers as exit liquidity. Bubblemaps found more than 40 addresses linked to Arora. Since the beginning of 2024, he has cashed out about $26.40 million, with the highest amount cashed out in August at $6.60 million. Despite the massive investor losses, Arora's actions are in a legal gray area that is difficult to pursue. Even the celebrities involved have been held partially responsible for not taking action against them.