Kekius Maximus
| Kekius Maximus | |
|---|---|
| Token | |
| Ticker | $KEKIUS |
| Contract | 0x26…7Dd9 |
| Chain | Ethereum |
| Launched | 2024-12-13 |
| Launchpad | Uniswap |
| Status | Active |
| Also known as | KEKIUS Kekius Kekius Maximus Pepe |
| Market | |
| Price | — |
| Market cap | — |
| Liquidity | — |
| Volume (24h) | — |
| Change (1h) | — |
| Change (24h) | — |
| Links | |
| DEX Screener · Birdeye · GMGN · Etherscan | |
Kekius Maximus (ticker KEKIUS) is an Ethereum memecoin that surged after Elon Musk changed his X display name to "Kekius Maximus" on 31 December 2024.[1][2] Its market cap went from about $12.7 million to nearly $400 million within 30 hours and fell about two-thirds within an hour of Musk reverting the change.[3]
Lore[edit]
The token was created on 13 December 2024, according to Etherscan.[2] It is based on a Pepe-inspired image reportedly made with Grok, the AI tool on X.[3] The name combines "kek", internet slang for laughter, with Maximus, Russell Crowe's character in the 2000 film Gladiator.[1]
Musk gave the name to his character in the game Path of Exile 2, posting that "Kekius Maximus will soon reach level 80 in hardcore PoE"; the token rose about 1,300% to a $20 million market cap.[1][3] On 31 December Musk adopted the name on X and replaced his profile picture with Pepe the Frog in Roman dress holding a game controller.[1] CoinGecko showed the token up more than 1,600% that evening.[1] It was unclear whether Musk had any involvement with the coin, and neither he nor X responded to AFP's questions.[1]
KEKIUS reached about $380 million in market cap on 1 January 2025, per CoinGecko.[2] After Musk restored his own name and photo, it fell 67% in an hour to about $95 million and was 83% below its peak within ten hours.[3]
Timeline[edit]
- 2024-12-13: token contract created on Ethereum[2]
- 2024-12-27: market cap reaches $1.7 million[3]
- 2024-12-31: Musk changes his X name and avatar to Kekius Maximus[1]
- 2025-01-01: market cap peaks near $380–400 million; Musk reverts and KEKIUS falls[2][3]
- 2025-02-11: Musk's brief "Harry Bōlz" name change sets off a similar round of Solana copycat tokens[4]
Key wallets[edit]
- An unnamed early buyer bought 10.17 million KEKIUS on 14 December 2024 and sold 2.81 million for 60.3 ETH on 1 January 2025, per Lookonchain; Cointelegraph reported the position turned about $66 of ether into as much as $3 million on paper.[2]
Controversies[edit]
Musk's name change produced many copycat tokens, including a "Free Tommy Robinson" token that reached a $4.8 million market cap after Musk turned to British politics.[3] The Block described his February 2025 "Harry Bōlz" change as fuelling more memecoin pump-and-dumps, and said KEKIUS had risen more than 30 times before falling over 75%.[4]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Elon Musk's mysterious 'Kekius Maximus' username change on X sends obscure crypto soaring over 1600%, Fortune, 2024-12-31
- ^ Elon Musk's bizarre name change on X turns trader's $66 into $3M profit, Cointelegraph, 2025-01-02
- ^ Dogecoin Hero Elon Musk Just Crashed Another Meme Coin—Here's How, Decrypt, 2025-01-02
- ^ Elon Musk's latest name change on X fuels more memecoin pump-and-dumps, The Block, 2025-02-12