The Litecoin-Walmart Fiasco Explained

Last Monday, Litecoin's value surged due to the now confirmed unauthentic announcement that Walmart would be accepting cryptocurrency. It has now been discovered that a fraudulent user issued the press release. But while it was being reported as fact, the price of Litecoin jumped from about $170 per token to around $230, before falling back near its original price, at about $180.

Litecoin Coin Value (USD) from August 18th - September 18th

Source: Yahoo Finance

The false press release announced that Litecoin would be accepted on all Walmart ecommerce platforms from 1 October. It contained quotes that appeared to come from both the Walmart CEO and the Litecoin’s Founder. And with the announcement being released through a legitimate press channel, many quickly believed this and hence drove the price of the coin up.

So called ‘pump and dump schemes’, like the one so well carried out by this fraudster, are not uncommon, and have made people weary and more hyperaware of the true volatility of crypto.