Quick take:
The Winter Bear NFT project earned the owners a whopping $3.4 million in has thus far turned out to be another NFT rug pull. In a long Twitter thread, one NFT trader ZachXBT has revealed how the Ponzi scheme unfolded, with the team behind the project running false advertising campaigns and airdrops to woo unsuspecting NFT enthusiasts.
The team followed its first collection with a second launch in December 2021, airdropping the Summer Bears NFTs, and later that month debuted the 3D Bears Collection, which ZachXBT claims netted the founders another 369 ETH.
The team apparently promised to give away a Pudgy Penguins NFT at 25% mint, and a Coll Cat NFT at 50% mint. However, that advertisement was removed from the website in October last year.
3/ Originally advertised in the roadmap was at 25% minted the team would giveaway a Pudgy Penguins NFT. At 50% minted they would giveaway a Cool Cat NFT.
In October 2021 this was removed by the team from the website with the NFT giveaway never happening. pic.twitter.com/ZonDpGFxhc
The expose reveals that the team used the NFT trader ArtChick to shill the project, attracting attention from the community.
“The team engaged in deceptive marketing where they sent the influencer ArtChick 5TH to sweep the floor to create fake hype. “Nushi had WB [Winter Bears NFT] holders raid AC [ArtChick] tweet so it would make it look like the raid was the reason for AC purchase,” ZachXBT wrote in the fourth post of the long thread, accompanied by graphics as back up.
The short-lived build-up in popularity pushed Winter Bears NFT sales to the top of the hourly rankings, as NFT traders trooped in.
The founders also falsely marketed Winter Bears as a ticket for the popular NFT collection decentralised organisation Art Club DAO. The team claimed that WB holders would qualify for revenue sharing, exclusive NFT drops, and free airdrops, which never materialised.
“This was first said in Sept 2021. It’s now Aug 2022 and nothing has happened,” the Twitter user wrote, accompanying the post with screenshots.
ZackXBT also unveiled another false advertisement involving a partnership with PieDAO, with the DAO dismissing claims that the WB team ever put a proposal.
The founders also looked to exploit the sympathy expressed towards polar bears by claiming that 10% of sales, about $40,000 worth would be donated to a polar bear charity.“A major selling point for buyers was 10% of the proceeds or $40k donation would go to a polar bear charity. It was not until April 2022 Nushi addressed this & claimed they now couldn’t donate,” the Twitter thread reads.
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