Hunter Biden is set to introduce the LAPTOP memecoin on Wednesday, but the crypto community appears far from enthusiastic about the project, with several traders openly criticizing the planned launch.
LAPTOP is expected to debut on Base, the Ethereum layer-2 network developed by Coinbase, with a maximum supply of 1 billion tokens. Biden and other project founders will receive 30% of the supply. Those holdings will be subject to a six-month lockup before being gradually released over more than two years.
A further 20% of the tokens is reserved for two planned airdrops. The first distribution is aimed at wallets holding TRUMP tokens at a loss. TRUMP is the memecoin launched by Donald Trump shortly before his 2025 presidential inauguration.
The planned distributions also include Biden’s Substack subscribers and people on a mailing list operated by video journalist Andrew Callaghan.
The Wall Street Journal first revealed details of the project. Biden subsequently confirmed the plans on X on Monday, sharing the token’s ticker alongside a montage of television news coverage focused on the laptop he left at a Delaware repair shop in 2019.
The planned launch has also prompted Base to make clear that hosting the token does not amount to an endorsement.
Jordan Fish, better known as Cobie and the head of Coinbase’s Base app team, responded to criticism directed at Base over LAPTOP. He said Base allows anyone to deploy tokens without requiring approval from Coinbase, adding that neither Base nor Coinbase has partnered with the LAPTOP project.
Base founder Jesse Pollak said the project’s team had contacted Base before the launch. He said the network deliberately chose not to assist with the token’s development or promotion because of the political sensitivities surrounding it.
Pollak reiterated that Base is a permissionless network and said anyone is welcome to build on the platform.
The story behind the LAPTOP token
The LAPTOP name draws directly from the controversy surrounding Hunter Biden’s laptop.
The device, which Biden left at a Delaware repair shop in 2019, reportedly contained emails related to his overseas business activities along with private photographs, messages and videos involving drug use and other aspects of his personal life. Material allegedly taken from the laptop became a major political controversy around the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
The episode also generated a large number of internet memes. Years later, Biden is attempting to turn that existing notoriety into a cryptocurrency.
The reaction from crypto traders has been notably hostile.
Pseudonymous DeFi developer scupytrooples responded to Biden’s announcement with an explicit message urging him to abandon the launch while there was still time. Prominent trader DonAlt described the move as an embarrassment, arguing that Biden had been given a platform only to use it for a memecoin. Pseudonymous investor Byzantine General also told Biden not to return to the crypto space.
The criticism soon reached crypto companies promoting the project.
Kraken removed a promotional post for LAPTOP after users questioned why the exchange was advertising another politically themed token. The company has not indicated whether it has abandoned any potential plans to list LAPTOP, while the project’s website says exchange listings will be disclosed once trading starts.
Callaghan also rejected any association with the token. He said neither he nor his Channel 5 program was involved with LAPTOP, despite a Channel 5 mailing list appearing among the groups eligible for the planned airdrop.
Callaghan told the Wall Street Journal that Channel 5 does not view cryptocurrency as a legitimate investment.
Despite the backlash, interest in the token has not completely disappeared. Pump.fun continued promoting LAPTOP on Tuesday, and tokens using the same name were trading on the platform during Asian morning hours.
The activity suggests that speculation around the controversy could still attract traders even as the project faces criticism.
CoinDesk has sought additional comment from Coinbase regarding Base’s connection to LAPTOP and from Kraken concerning its decision to remove the promotional post.
An update published Sept. 8 at 13:34 UTC changed the article’s lead image to a photograph of Hunter Biden.
