- Coinbase faced public outrage due to an email distributed by the exchange to its customers.
- The email from the exchange listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange claimed that the mascot of the famous PEPE memecoin is a hate symbol used by the alternative right wing.
- Coinbase referred to the mascot’s racial history over the past 20 years.
Crypto exchange Coinbase faced public outrage due to screenshots taken from an email sent to its customers.
The email from the exchange listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange claimed that the mascot of the famous PEPE memecoin is a hate symbol used by the alternative right wing.
(Also see: PEPE Memecoin: The Power of Memes in the Crypto World)
PEPE-Loving Coinbase Users Call for Boycott
Coinbase, referring to the mascot’s racial history over the past 20 years, commented on the recent popularity of PEPE memecoin.
According to the email,
“PEPE was launched into the market about three weeks ago with a funny 420 trillion TOKENS and was leading the memecoin activity… Over time, it began to be used as a hate symbol by alternative right groups, as identified by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).”
The emblem was even used by conservative politicians such as Donald Trump. Over time, the Pepe the Frog character was adopted by several white supremacist figures. The Anti-Defamation League’s website states that Pepe the Frog character did not originally have a racist or anti-Semitic meaning.
The website says,
“Since not all Pepe ‘the Frog’ memes are bigoted, its important to examine use of the meme only in context.”
The Pepe the Frog meme logo was created by Matt Furie, who refused to associate it with anything. Reports indicate that the Pepe the Frog symbol was added as a hate symbol by the Anti-Defamation League in 2016.
Despite its controversial history, users began to suggest boycotting the exchange and moving their PEPEs to rival exchange Binance.
Coinbase’s List of Problems is Growing, What Did You Expect from PEPE?
#DeleteCoinbase trended on Twitter and Gemini reportedly saw a flow of 300 billion PEPEs as a result.
However, several Twitter users also claimed they did not receive the email from Coinbase, casting doubt on its authenticity.
Before starting to decline on May 5th, the Pepe (PEPE) coin price had led gains across the entire cryptocurrency market since the beginning of April. At the time of writing, Pepe is still spiraling downwards and has lost more than 16% in the last 24 hours.
PEPE Price Drops to 0.00000162!
As the debate continues, CEO Brian Armstrong retweeted a tweet from Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal. He then said that it is important to publicly address differences to move towards a closer working relationship. The quote emphasized that disagreements should be handled respectfully and in good faith.
Meanwhile, Coinbase is focusing on other regions such as the UAE as it faces deep regulatory issues in the US. However, it denied relocation rumors.
Armstrong continued to criticize the chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the region’s regulatory status as the exchange received a Wells notice. Former Coinbase executive Ishan Wahi was sentenced to two years in prison for making the first known crypto insider trade.
Coinbase is facing two proposed class-action lawsuits. The exchange’s top officials are accused of using insider information to profit from listings. It is also criticized for privacy breaches.
