Hailey Welch, the social media figure known online as the “Hawk Tuah girl,” says the fallout from the HAWK memecoin she promoted in 2024 left her shaken and retreating from public life. In an interview with Andrew Callaghan on the Channel 5 YouTube channel, Welch said she was talked into promoting the token despite having little understanding of how it worked and urged others to be cautious about endorsements.
Welch told Callaghan she fully cooperated with an FBI investigation in 2025 that ultimately cleared her of criminal wrongdoing. She said she never had control of the launch funds and lacked the technical ability to create the token herself.
Her attorney has estimated that retail investors lost roughly $200,000 in the failed launch. Despite that relatively modest figure, Welch says she received death threats and withdrew from public appearances for months as the episode took a toll on her mental health. She described receiving threats and accusations from people who believed she was responsible for their losses: “People telling me I owe them all this money, and I’m like, ‘I didn’t do this,’” she said, adding that the harassment made it difficult to leave the house.
Not everyone accepted Welch’s version of events. Onchain investigator ZachXBT criticized her conduct, saying she posted about memecoins despite warnings, went ahead with the token’s launch, then shifted blame to partners and disappeared from social channels while followers suffered losses.
The HAWK memecoin launched in December 2024 and saw a dramatic, short-lived surge: within hours its market capitalization reportedly topped $490 million. The token plunged more than 91% the next day to about $41 million and was widely labeled a rug pull. At the time of reporting, the token’s market cap had fallen to roughly $1 million.
In December 2024 an investor lawsuit was filed against the creators and entities behind the memecoin, accusing them of selling unregistered securities; Welch was not named in that suit.
The episode highlights risks for creators and their audiences when influencers promote complex financial products without full understanding. Welch’s experience underscores both the legal scrutiny such promotions can draw and the intense public backlash that can follow sudden losses.
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