Haliey Welch Readdresses HAWK Collapse, Says She Had No Control

Haliey Welch, the viral internet personality known as “Hawk Tuah,” has again addressed the collapse of the HAWK meme coin, insisting she had no control over the project and was misled by the team people the whole show.

During an interview with Andrew Callaghan, a YouTube personality on Channel 5, Welch said her role was limited to allowing her name and face to be used for the token, while others handled the financial side of the project.

Involvement limited to Welch’s name

Welch said she “got talked into” the project even though she did not know anything about cryptocurrency. She said she trusted the wrong people and had never used platforms like X before. According to her, she only approved the use of her image, while a separate team managed the coin and gave her scripts to read in videos.

She said she did not really understand how the coin worked, even after attending crypto events such as the Bitcoin conference. The influencer also said the project was pitched to her as a community effort, with promises of charitable donations and fan engagement rewards. “I just put my name on it,” she said, adding that people made her role seem bigger than it was.

The chaotic launch of HAWK meme coin

Welch said the token’s launch was chaotic and recalled erratic behavior from the people managing the project.

“The coin launched, I actually had, I think, two podcasts that day. We were in California when it happened, and the guy that was in the room with us, the one that was operating the coin, we noticed he was like pacing around everywhere like nervous, and I was like is that normal?” she said.

Social media backlash escalated as the coin quickly lost value. Welch said she first realized how serious the situation was through online reactions, including rumors that she could go to jail.

She said she fully cooperated with the FBI and SEC and was cleared of any wrongdoing. Still, the experience was stressful. She faced threats, public anger, and damage to her reputation. The HAWK coin once reached a $400 million market cap before falling over 90% within hours of launch, making it one of the most talked-about failed influencer crypto projects.

Welch had previously addressed the situation in a 2025 YouTube video on her channel, “Talk Tuah with Hailey,” where she gave a fuller account of what happened. She said her management introduced her to crypto and convinced her to promote the coin.

Although she was skeptical, she agreed to promote it because she believed it was legit. She said she was promised a marketing fee, not profits, and that some proceeds would go to charity. Welch also said she did not make money from the coin and that any payments she received went toward legal fees and crisis public relations. 

Looking back, Welch warned other influencers to be careful. She said attaching your name to crypto without understanding it can cause big problems. “Stay away from it,” she said.

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