Hailey Welch, the social media influencer known as the “Hawk Tuah girl,” has stated that the implosion of the HAWK memecoin she promoted in 2024 left her “traumatized.” In a recent interview, she claimed to have been cleared by an FBI investigation and that retail investors lost approximately $200,000. The memecoin surged to a market cap of over $490 million before collapsing by over 91% the next day, an event widely characterized as a rug pull.
Hailey Welch said the failed HAWK memecoin and subsequent backlash “traumatized” her. She told interviewer Andrew Callaghan she was “talked into doing something that I didn’t know anything about.”
Welch stated she fully cooperated with a Federal Bureau of Investigation probe in 2025, which cleared her of any wrongdoing. She said she did not possess any funds from the launch and lacked the technical expertise to launch the coin.
Her lawyer estimated total retail losses at about $200,000. Despite this, Welch reported receiving death threats and attempting to keep a low profile for months.
“I was starting to get death threats and everything else. People telling me I owe them all this money, and I’m like, ‘I didn’t do this.’ I’m sitting here, and I’m the one getting hit for this. It’s rough. It’s one of those things where if you come out of the house, you put your head down,” she said. Onchain investigator ZachXBT stated that no one should feel bad for her trauma.
He added that she launched the token despite warnings and later blamed partners. The HAWK memecoin launched in December 2024 and reached a market capitalization of over $490 million within hours. It then fell to a market cap of about $41 million the following day.
An investor lawsuit was filed in December 2024 against the team and entities that created the memecoin. The suit alleged the entities sold unregistered securities.
