Elon Musk’s X move tanks Kekius Maximus token 60% in an hour; Whale cashes out $2.3M profit

Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk changed his profile name on X to “Kekius Maximus,” and the crypto token by the same name quickly plummeted by 60% within an hour.

Soon after Elon Musk adopted the new name, KEKIUS whale 0x820…31cc sold his bags, contributing immensely to the token’s loss. The whale, however, has earned a $2.3 million profit from the token.

Elon Musk updated his X profile name to “Kekius Maximus”

Elon Musk took the name “Kekius Maximus” on X Tuesday and changed his profile image to the character Pepe the Frog in Roman attire, holding a game pad. 

"I am Kekius Maximus, CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, and X, servant to the vision of human progress. Father of many innovations, husband to the idea of interplanetary life. And I will achieve my goals, in this era or the next."@elonmusk 🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/ALdsceaaSY

— Tesla Owners Silicon Valley (@teslaownersSV) December 31, 2024

Several commentaries have emerged regarding Elon Musk’s handle change, particularly due to the association of the name “Kekius” and the Pepe character with far-right groups. Some suggested he may have intended it as a joke, while others hinted at possible hidden meanings to the change. However, Musk has yet to give a direct explanation about his profile alterations.

The term ‘Kekius’ appears to have been coined from the Latin “Kek,” which connotes laughter. Moreover, ‘Kek’ is said to be an ancient Egyptian god of darkness with a frog’s head. ‘Maximus’ is related to the character played by Russell Crow in the movie Gladiator, Maximus Decimus Meridius.

Musk’s X name update caused the KEKIUS token to pump

Soon after Musk updated his profile name, the value of the memecoin Kekius Maximus shot up. As of Tuesday evening, the memecoin’s value had surged by more than 900%; however, at the time, it was not immediately clear if Musk’s move had caused the price rise.

However, the KEKIUS whale ‘0x820168e15ec0c16cd757257399519429eb2b31cc’ began selling his assets, triggering a 60% drop in the token’s prices in just one hour. The whale has received $2.3 million in profits, with a 40% win rate.

The KEKIUS token is currently priced at $0.001399, an 83% loss in the last 24 hours. Its 24-hour trading volume is also down by 70%, at only $1.48 million, with some tying the drop to Elon Musk’s profile change.