Cryptoeats Disappears After Raising £500K From Token Sale
Cryptoeats, a company that reportedly raised 8 million in a Series A funding round to build a crypto-based Ubereats alternative, disappeared after launching its token. According to estimations, the startup might have taken more than £500K from investors after the launch of its official token dubbed “eats.” The alleged scam was promoted by UK influencers and manufactured related apparel, and even hosting a launching party in London.
Cryptoeats Initiative Vanishes After Token Launch
Cryptoeats, a company that proposed to build a crypto-based Ubereats alternative, vanished from the internet just minutes after launching its official token. The company, which had an official website and claimed to have raised funds to build their proposal, stated it had run a public beta of the service, partnering with food chains like Nando’s and McDonald’s.
Furthermore, the startup claimed it had already onboarded more than 100,000 customers, who have signed up to download the app and use it on launch day. But the developers of eats, the native token of the platform, emptied the wallet holding the funds coming from the initial token sale, stealing more than £500K from investors, according to reports. Soon after this, all of the social media accounts of the startup disappeared, along with its website.
Cryptoeats Looked Legit
Cryptoeats worried about looking legitimate before disappearing. The company first outed a PR statement where it claimed it had raised $8 million in its series A funding round in 2020. The PR statement, that was published on October 16, declared the company was “set to take a large slice of the $16.6 billion delivery app market.” The statement was issued using Globenewswire and was featured on Yahoo Finance’s website, but both references have been eliminated now.
At a local level, Cryptoeats also did its work bringing U.K. influencers to promote the new initiative among their fanbase. Joey Essex, a reality TV celebrity that promoted Cryptoeats, stated to local media he lamented the situation. Essex stressed:
I’m fuming. This company used my name to dupe lots of people into investing money. It’s disgusting and I feel bad for anybody in that situation.
But Essex was not the only local celebrity that promoted Cryptoeats. Lots of other influencers attended a launch party last week in London, where Cryptoeats apparel was shown and worn by some of the assistants.
What do you think about the whole Cryptoeats fiasco? Tell us in the comments section below.