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{"actor":"system:backfill","investigation_id":"63def5ce-2407-4308-aeaf-909c50045393","kind":"publish","page_slug":"believe","published_at":"2026-05-31T20:27:57.982Z","sequence_num":1,"snapshot":{"content_type":"investigation","entity_name":"Believe","sections":[{"content":"Believe (believe.app) is a Solana-based memecoin launchpad that allows users to deploy tokens without a cryptocurrency wallet or technical knowledge by replying to posts from the platform's '@launchcoin' account on X with a desired ticker name. The platform's backend automatically deploys the token on Solana, with the contract address publicly confirmed via an automated reply. The concept was framed around the 'Internet Capital Markets' narrative — the idea that any project, creator, or idea could raise speculative capital through social media engagement.\n\nNew tokens launch on a dynamic bonding curve with anti-snipe fees that decay from high initial rates to a base of approximately 2% as liquidity accumulates. When a token reaches a $100,000 market capitalization threshold, Believe graduates it off the bonding curve and migrates it to Meteora, a Solana liquidity protocol. Trading fees are split 50/50 between the platform and the token creator, with payouts distributed daily to creators who link their X account.\n\nA secondary participant class called 'scouts' can tokenize any existing X post on behalf of its author and earn a 0.1% slice of trading fees in perpetuity for identifying promising content early. The platform explicitly positions tokens as 'digital merchandise' with no ownership, governance rights, or revenue claims, a framing that critics argue is intended to avoid securities classification while still functioning as speculative investment vehicles.\n\nBelieve processed approximately $6 billion in cumulative trading volume between its April 2025 launch and late 2025, generating an estimated $54 million in platform fees. At its May 2025 peak, Believe captured approximately 13.6% of all Solana launchpad token launches in a single day.","heading":"Platform Overview and Business Model","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"What Is Believe? Launching Memecoins via X Replies — CoinGecko","type":"research","url":"https://www.coingecko.com/learn/what-is-believe-token-launchpad"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe: The Solana Token Launcher Coming for Venture Capital — Bankless","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.bankless.com/read/believe-solana-token-launcher"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe.app: New viral memecoin launchpad on Solana — Phantom","type":"other","url":"https://phantom.com/learn/crypto-101/believe-app-solana"}]},{"content":"Ben Pasternak, born September 6, 1999, in Sydney, Australia, is the founder of the Believe platform. Pasternak is a serial entrepreneur who previously founded Flogg (later pivoted to Monkey, a teen video chat app acquired by Holla in February 2018) and co-founded Simulate, a plant-based food company whose flagship product Nuggs raised $50 million in a Series B at a $260 million valuation before being sold in October 2024. Pasternak was named to Forbes' '30 Under 30' list in 2021.\n\nPasternak launched the platform in January 2025 initially under the name 'Clout,' which enabled user-specific social tokens. The platform rebranded to Believe in late April 2025 and shifted focus to a broader memecoin launchpad model. The platform's X interaction mechanism and the 'Internet Capital Markets' framing, a term popularized in the Solana ecosystem, drove rapid viral adoption in May 2025.\n\nPasternak operates through the legal entities B24, Inc. and the Believe Foundation, both of which are named as defendants in subsequent civil litigation.","heading":"Founding History and Rebranding","severity":"low","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Ben Pasternak — Wikipedia","type":"other","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Pasternak"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Founder of Solana Token Launchpad Believe Arrested — Decrypt","type":"news_article","url":"https://decrypt.co/365292/founder-solana-token-launchpad-believe-arrested"}]},{"content":"The Believe ecosystem has cycled through three successive native tokens, each associated with a distinct branding phase. On January 24, 2025, Pasternak launched the $PASTERNAK token and publicly stated he had '0 ownership in the token' — a claim that later became central to civil fraud allegations. In early May 2025, the platform rebranded PASTERNAK to LAUNCHCOIN, coinciding with the Believe rebrand, which drove the token from a roughly $10 million market cap to over $240 million within days.\n\nOn October 15, 2025, Pasternak announced a mandatory migration from $LAUNCHCOIN to a new token, $BELIEVE, with a two-week conversion window requiring holders to exchange their tokens by October 29, 2025. The new $BELIEVE supply was set at 1.333 billion tokens, up from 1 billion — an increase of 33.3%. The team publicly described this as a '25% increase,' a framing that influencer Cobie mocked on X: 'Personally I believe that 100×1.25 is 133.' Of the 333 million new tokens, approximately 17% were allocated to contributors, 5% to early investors, and 3% to the foundation. Token balances that were not migrated before the deadline were permanently destroyed.\n\nThe $BELIEVE token reached an all-time high of approximately $0.369 in May 2025. As of May 2026, it trades at approximately $0.00167, representing a decline of approximately 99.5% from peak. The circulating and maximum supply is 1.33 billion tokens. Holders who did not complete the migration by October 29, 2025 lost their entire balance.","heading":"Native Token History: $PASTERNAK, $LAUNCHCOIN, and $BELIEVE","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"LAUNCHCOIN to BELIEVE Token Swap and Rebranding — CoinCarp","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.coincarp.com/currencies/announcement/launchcoin-to-believe-token-swap-and-rebranding/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe App's $BELIEVE Token Launch Backfires Over 'Math Error' and Supply Confusion — Blocmates","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.blocmates.com/news-posts/believe-app-believe-token-launch-backfires-over-math-error-and-supply-confusion"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe Price — CoinGecko","type":"on_chain","url":"https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/launch-coin-on-believe"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Class Action Claims Believe Founder Collected $54M While Diluting Token Holders — Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/class-action-claims-believe-founder-collected-54m-while-diluting-token-holders/"}]},{"content":"On March 23, 2026, Burwick Law filed a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Ben Pasternak, B24, Inc., and the Believe Foundation. Lead plaintiffs are Joshua Lee (California) and Pierre Montmeas (France), representing token holders across $PASTERNAK, $LAUNCHCOIN, and $BELIEVE from January 2025 onward.\n\nThe complaint alleges that Pasternak 'ran the same play three times, under three different token names,' characterizing the overall pattern as: 'generate excitement, bring consumers in, collect fees, and let the token collapse.' Specific allegations include: (1) false claims of 'zero ownership' in tokens while collecting creator fees on every trade; (2) breaking at least 12 public buyback promises that the complaint states 'never materialized'; (3) executing a forced token migration that diluted holders by approximately 33% while publicly framing the increase as only 25%; (4) allocating approximately 25% of newly minted tokens to insider-linked wallets; (5) immediately unlocking a foundation allocation of approximately 40 million tokens; and (6) permanently destroying the token balances of holders who missed the two-week migration deadline.\n\nThe complaint estimates that Believe generated approximately $54 million in fees from roughly $6 billion in trading volume and that consumer losses reached into the hundreds of millions of dollars. As of the filing date, $BELIEVE was trading at approximately $0.0007, a decline of 99.8% from its all-time high. Pasternak has not publicly responded to the allegations in the lawsuit.","heading":"Federal Class Action Lawsuit","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Burwick Law Class Action Filing Announcement — X","type":"social_media","url":"https://x.com/BurwickLaw/status/2036408115088756760"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Class Action Claims Believe Founder Collected $54M While Diluting Token Holders — Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/class-action-claims-believe-founder-collected-54m-while-diluting-token-holders/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe Founder Arrest Adds Fresh Pressure to Token Case — Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/believe-founder-arrest-adds-fresh-pressure-to-token-case/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Ben Pasternak Lawsuit: Key Facts on Believe Token Collapse for Investors — Phemex","type":"news_article","url":"https://phemex.com/academy/who-is-ben-pasternak-lawsuit-believe-token-collapse"},{"credibility":1,"name":"SocialFi app Believe founder arrested on strangulation charges following rug pull lawsuit — The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/398532/believe-founder-arrested-strangulation"}]},{"content":"On April 21, 2026, Ben Pasternak was arrested by New York authorities and charged with one count of strangulation in the second degree and two counts of assault in the third degree with intent to cause physical injury. The charges relate to an alleged incident on March 31, 2026, at the Baccarat Hotel on West 53rd Street in Manhattan, involving Pasternak's then-girlfriend, influencer Evelyn Ha. The criminal complaint alleges Pasternak squeezed Ha's neck with both hands, leaving redness on her neck, throat pain, and difficulty breathing, after she attempted to record him on her phone.\n\nHa subsequently spoke publicly about the incident, stating there had been 'serious boundaries crossed' and that she had left the relationship for her safety. Pasternak has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is represented by attorney Joshua Kirschner. A court appearance was scheduled for June 11, 2026. The criminal charges are distinct from and do not overlap with the civil class action lawsuit.","heading":"Criminal Charges Against Founder","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Founder of Solana Token Launchpad Believe Arrested on Assault, Strangulation Charges — Decrypt","type":"news_article","url":"https://decrypt.co/365292/founder-solana-token-launchpad-believe-arrested"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe Founder Arrested on Strangulation Charges as Token Collapses 99% — Bitcoin.com News","type":"news_article","url":"https://news.bitcoin.com/believe-founder-ben-pasternak-arrested-strangulation-token-collapses/"},{"credibility":1,"name":"SocialFi app Believe founder arrested on strangulation charges — The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/398532/believe-founder-arrested-strangulation"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Evelyn Ha speaks out after Ben Pasternak's arrest — The Express Tribune","type":"news_article","url":"https://tribune.com.pk/story/2604524/evelyn-ha-speaks-out-after-ben-pasternaks-arrest-in-new-york-assault-case"}]},{"content":"In late 2024 and publicly disclosed on December 16, 2025, Kled AI founder Avi Patel alleged that Pasternak had violated an OTC-only agreement governing his approximately 6% stake in the $KLED token. Patel alleged that on September 25, 2025 — the day of Kled's mobile app launch — Pasternak sold the majority of his tokens via OTC to an undisclosed third party, who then allegedly sold over 1% of the total $KLED supply on the open market. Pasternak had previously agreed not to sell tokens on the public market. Patel stated the Kled team was 'forced into damage control, scrambling to coordinate OTC solutions to prevent further market harm.'\n\nThe Kled team purchased Pasternak's position twice over the counter, reducing his stake from approximately 6% to 1.7%. When pressed for an explanation, Pasternak attributed the sales to 'taxes,' a response Patel described as meaningless. Pasternak also allegedly backed out of as many as four separate OTC deals in September 2025 and had been inactive on social media for approximately two months at the time of Patel's disclosure. These allegations preceded the class action lawsuit and are cited by plaintiff attorneys as evidence of a broader pattern of conduct.","heading":"KLED Token Dump Allegations","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe founder Ben Pasternak accused of secretly dumping KLED tokens — Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/believe-founder-ben-pasternak-accused-of-secretly-dumping-kled-tokens/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Kled Founder's Tirade Against Ben Pasternak Hammers Final Nail into Believe's Coffin — Solana Floor","type":"news_article","url":"https://solanafloor.com/news/kled-founder-s-tirade-against-ben-pasternak-hammers-final-nail-into-believes-coffin"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Kled AI founder calls out Believe's Pasternak for dumping tokens — Cryptopolitan","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.cryptopolitan.com/kled-calls-out-believe-for-dumping-tokens/"}]},{"content":"Beyond the controversies tied to the platform's native tokens, Believe's low-friction launchpad model creates systemic risks for retail participants. On May 22, 2025, Believe temporarily suspended X reply-based token launches after a surge of spam and non-project tokens; the platform processed over 4,000 new token deployments per day at peak, with Believe capturing 13.6% of all Solana launchpad launches on May 15 before dropping to 2.6% by May 17. Following the suspension, launches shifted to a manual review process via the website.\n\nA structural security concern is that Believe permits mutable token metadata post-launch, meaning creators can alter a token's name, symbol, description, and linked website after deployment. This creates a vector for impersonation attacks or phishing link injection after a token has attracted a user base. Critics in the security community have flagged this as a significant risk that distinguishes Believe from platforms that require metadata to be frozen at launch.\n\nThe bonding curve model itself also exposes retail buyers to early-stage price manipulation, as tokens launched by or associated with prominent accounts can attract bot and sniper activity before anti-snipe fee decay. The high-fee initial period is intended to mitigate sniping, but the practical effectiveness depends on bot sophistication and is difficult to verify independently.","heading":"Platform-Level Risks: Spam, Mutable Metadata, and Token Quality","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"What Is Believe? Launching Memecoins via X Replies — CoinGecko","type":"research","url":"https://www.coingecko.com/learn/what-is-believe-token-launchpad"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe memecoin launchpad rolls out rug protection features — Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/believe-memecoin-launchpad-rolls-out-rug-protection-features/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe Launchpad Reverses Listing Policy After Backlash — BeInCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://beincrypto.com/believe-launchpad-adjusts-token-policies/"}]},{"content":"Believe explicitly positions tokens launched on its platform as 'digital merchandise' with no ownership, governance rights, or revenue claims. This framing is intended to distinguish tokens from securities under the Howey test, though legal analysts have noted that the speculative nature of token trading and the economic incentives built into the fee-sharing model present unresolved regulatory questions. No formal SEC or CFTC action against Believe had been reported as of May 2026; the outstanding legal matter is a civil class action lawsuit in the Southern District of New York, not a regulatory enforcement proceeding.\n\nThe lawsuit itself, however, invokes fraud and deceptive business practice claims rather than specifically alleging unregistered securities offerings, which may reflect a deliberate legal strategy or the current ambiguity in U.S. crypto securities law. The outcome of the class action litigation could have broader implications for similar social-token launchpads that employ comparable fee-sharing and token-creation mechanics.","heading":"Regulatory Exposure and Securities Classification","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe: The Solana Token Launcher Coming for Venture Capital — Bankless","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.bankless.com/read/believe-solana-token-launcher"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe's LAUNCHCOIN: Redefining Markets or Fueling Hype? — Disruption Banking","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.disruptionbanking.com/2025/05/28/believes-launchcoin-redefining-markets-or-fueling-hype/"}]}],"sources_used":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Founder of Solana Token Launchpad Believe Arrested on Assault, Strangulation Charges — Decrypt","type":"news_article","url":"https://decrypt.co/365292/founder-solana-token-launchpad-believe-arrested"},{"credibility":1,"name":"SocialFi app Believe founder arrested on strangulation charges following rug pull lawsuit — The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/398532/believe-founder-arrested-strangulation"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Class Action Claims Believe Founder Collected $54M While Diluting Token Holders — Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/class-action-claims-believe-founder-collected-54m-while-diluting-token-holders/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe Founder Arrest Adds Fresh Pressure to Token Case — Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/believe-founder-arrest-adds-fresh-pressure-to-token-case/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Ben Pasternak Lawsuit: Key Facts on Believe Token Collapse for Investors — Phemex","type":"news_article","url":"https://phemex.com/academy/who-is-ben-pasternak-lawsuit-believe-token-collapse"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe App's $BELIEVE Token Launch Backfires Over 'Math Error' and Supply Confusion — Blocmates","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.blocmates.com/news-posts/believe-app-believe-token-launch-backfires-over-math-error-and-supply-confusion"},{"credibility":2,"name":"What Is Believe? Launching Memecoins via X Replies — CoinGecko","type":"research","url":"https://www.coingecko.com/learn/what-is-believe-token-launchpad"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Ben Pasternak — Wikipedia","type":"other","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Pasternak"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe: The Solana Token Launcher Coming for Venture Capital — Bankless","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.bankless.com/read/believe-solana-token-launcher"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe Founder Arrested on Strangulation Charges as Token Collapses 99% — Bitcoin.com News","type":"news_article","url":"https://news.bitcoin.com/believe-founder-ben-pasternak-arrested-strangulation-token-collapses/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe founder Ben Pasternak accused of secretly dumping KLED tokens — Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/believe-founder-ben-pasternak-accused-of-secretly-dumping-kled-tokens/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Kled Founder's Tirade Against Ben Pasternak — Solana Floor","type":"news_article","url":"https://solanafloor.com/news/kled-founder-s-tirade-against-ben-pasternak-hammers-final-nail-into-believes-coffin"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Burwick Law Class Action Filing Announcement — X","type":"social_media","url":"https://x.com/BurwickLaw/status/2036408115088756760"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe memecoin launchpad rolls out rug protection features — Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/believe-memecoin-launchpad-rolls-out-rug-protection-features/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Launchcoin and Believe.app: Crypto Internet Capital Markets — 99Bitcoins","type":"news_article","url":"https://99bitcoins.com/news/launchcoin-and-believe-app-crypto-internet-capital-markets/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"LAUNCHCOIN Skyrockets 3,000% on Believe App Hype — BeInCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://beincrypto.com/launchcoin-surges-believe-app-viral-hype/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe Price — CoinGecko","type":"on_chain","url":"https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/launch-coin-on-believe"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Evelyn Ha speaks out after Ben Pasternak's arrest — The Express Tribune","type":"news_article","url":"https://tribune.com.pk/story/2604524/evelyn-ha-speaks-out-after-ben-pasternaks-arrest-in-new-york-assault-case"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Believe's LAUNCHCOIN: Redefining Markets or Fueling Hype? — Disruption Banking","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.disruptionbanking.com/2025/05/28/believes-launchcoin-redefining-markets-or-fueling-hype/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"LAUNCHCOIN to BELIEVE Token Swap and Rebranding — CoinCarp","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.coincarp.com/currencies/announcement/launchcoin-to-believe-token-swap-and-rebranding/"}],"summary":"Believe (believe.app) is a Solana-based token launchpad founded by Australian entrepreneur Ben Pasternak, originally launched in January 2025 as 'Clout' before rebranding. The platform popularized a 'tweet-to-token' model under the 'Internet Capital Markets' narrative, enabling anyone to deploy a Solana token by replying to an X post. The platform and its founder face a federal class action lawsuit alleging coordinated investor fraud across three successive token schemes, Pasternak's arrest on criminal assault and strangulation charges, and widespread accusations of supply dilution, broken buyback promises, and fee extraction totaling an estimated $54 million on roughly $6 billion in trading volume.","timeline":[{"date":"2025-01-24","event":"Ben Pasternak launches the $PASTERNAK token on Solana under the Clout brand and publicly states he has '0 ownership in the token.'","source":"Phemex Academy","source_url":"https://phemex.com/academy/who-is-ben-pasternak-lawsuit-believe-token-collapse"},{"date":"2025-04-28","event":"Pasternak rebrands the Clout platform to Believe and launches the LAUNCHCOIN token. The rebrand goes viral and drives a rapid spike in trading activity.","source":"CoinGecko","source_url":"https://www.coingecko.com/learn/what-is-believe-token-launchpad"},{"date":"2025-05-14","event":"Believe sees over 4,000 new token deployments in a single day, capturing approximately 14% of all Solana launchpad activity. $LAUNCHCOIN surges approximately 27,000% from its pre-rebrand low.","source":"BeInCrypto","source_url":"https://beincrypto.com/launchcoin-surges-believe-app-viral-hype/"},{"date":"2025-05-15","event":"$LAUNCHCOIN reaches an all-time high of approximately $0.369, implying a market capitalization above $240 million.","source":"CoinGecko","source_url":"https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/launch-coin-on-believe"},{"date":"2025-05-22","event":"Believe suspends X reply-based token launches due to spam and low-quality tokens, shifting to manual review via its website.","source":"CoinGecko","source_url":"https://www.coingecko.com/learn/what-is-believe-token-launchpad"},{"date":"2025-09-24","event":"Kled AI releases its mobile app. Pasternak allegedly sells the majority of his KLED token position via OTC to an undisclosed third party on the following day, violating a prior agreement.","source":"Protos","source_url":"https://protos.com/believe-founder-ben-pasternak-accused-of-secretly-dumping-kled-tokens/"},{"date":"2025-10-15","event":"Believe announces mandatory migration from $LAUNCHCOIN to $BELIEVE token, increasing total supply from 1 billion to 1.333 billion tokens (33.3% increase, described by team as 25%). $LAUNCHCOIN drops approximately 29-30% on the announcement.","source":"Blocmates","source_url":"https://www.blocmates.com/news-posts/believe-app-believe-token-launch-backfires-over-math-error-and-supply-confusion"},{"date":"2025-10-29","event":"Migration deadline expires. Token balances of holders who did not complete the $LAUNCHCOIN to $BELIEVE swap are permanently destroyed. Estimates suggest over $80 million in market value was erased.","source":"Crypto.news","source_url":"https://crypto.news/class-action-claims-believe-founder-collected-54m-while-diluting-token-holders/"},{"date":"2025-12-16","event":"Kled AI founder Avi Patel publicly accuses Pasternak of dumping KLED tokens via OTC in violation of their agreement, disclosing the alleged pattern of selling behavior.","source":"Protos","source_url":"https://protos.com/believe-founder-ben-pasternak-accused-of-secretly-dumping-kled-tokens/"},{"date":"2026-03-23","event":"Burwick Law files a federal class action lawsuit in the Southern District of New York against Pasternak, B24 Inc., and the Believe Foundation on behalf of token holders.","source":"Crypto.news","source_url":"https://crypto.news/class-action-claims-believe-founder-collected-54m-while-diluting-token-holders/"},{"date":"2026-03-31","event":"Alleged assault incident at the Baccarat Hotel in Manhattan involving Pasternak and influencer Evelyn Ha.","source":"Decrypt","source_url":"https://decrypt.co/365292/founder-solana-token-launchpad-believe-arrested"},{"date":"2026-04-21","event":"Ben Pasternak is arrested in New York and charged with second-degree strangulation and two counts of third-degree assault. He pleads not guilty.","source":"The Block","source_url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/398532/believe-founder-arrested-strangulation"}]},"v":1}