Jake Claver, CEO of Digital Ascension Group, a firm that helps wealthy individuals and their families navigate the world of cryptocurrency, recalls how one of his clients, “a gentleman from Dallas,” turned $11,000 into almost half a billion dollars, primarily from trading memecoins – culturally themed crypto tokens with no real utility whose valuations can fluctuate wildly.

The lucky investor, whom Claver got to know first as a friend, managed his own crypto. “He used a sniper bot [automated software that will buy and sell newly listed tokens in milliseconds according to certain parameters] that made him millions from memecoin trading,” Claver said.

Eventually, Claver persuaded his friend to attend one of the registered…