Is Lil Tay Dead? A Look into the Crypto Scam

Key Takeaways:

• On Thursday, a day after the influencer’s Instagram said Lil Tay had passed away, a cryptocurrency named after her was released.
• There was talk that the post was fake, therefore the notice was taken down.
• Her former manager Harry Tsang admitted to developing a cryptocurrency named after her but denied having anything to do with its unveiling.

Less than a day after the verified Instagram account of the 15-year-old influencer Lil Tay revealed her death, a bitcoin coin bearing her name was created.

On Thursday morning, a new cryptocurrency named Lil Tay was released on the BNB Smart Chain with a total amount of 100 coins. No one has stepped forward to take credit for the coin’s creation.

Tay’s ex-manager Harry Tsang told Insider he had started working on a Lil Tay digital coin in April but denied having any involvement to the one that was eventually issued. On Thursday, he shut down his Lil Tay token website, which he had created earlier this year.

He emphatically denied being the person in question. I previously issued a warning to everyone. It’s not who we are. Everything, including the website, was just taken down.

Tsang cautioned his Twitter followers of a possible token launch hoax.

Sharing this to let everybody know that we will not be launching anything soon. We’ve been in development for 4-5 months now.

If anybody is reaching out to you for money saying they’re involved with $liltay it’s not true.

If you see another token/coin with liltay it’s a scam.

— Liltay Token (@LiltayToken) August 10, 2023

Instagram posts from Lil Tay on Wednesday said the controversial child celebrity and her brother had passed away.

We regret to inform you of the untimely and awful loss of our much loved Claire,” the post, which has since been deleted, stated in part. This result caught us all by surprise, and we are all in disbelief. The loss of her sibling further deepens our sorrow to an unfathomable degree. That comment has been removed at this time.

Insider was unable to verify Lil Tay’s passing, and the Instagram account’s administrators remain a mystery.

As Tsang explained to Insider via email on Wednesday, “given the complexities of the current circumstances, I am at a point where I cannot definitively confirm or dismiss the legitimacy of the statement issued by the family.” Because of the sensitivity of the situation, much thought and deliberation are required. I’m still dedicated to keeping you informed in a timely and trustworthy manner.

Christopher Hope, Lil Tay’s father, told Insider he was unable to comment on the Instagram image and would not confirm or deny her survival.

Both the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office have stated that they have no record of an investigation into the death of a Claire Hope.

At the tender age of nine, Lil Tay shot to fame thanks to the provocative and often vulgar videos in which she presented herself as “the world’s youngest flexer,” often appearing in front of expensive cars and wads of cash. She teamed up with divisive YouTubers like Danielle Bregoli and Jake Paul, causing a scandal and generating extensive media coverage.

May 2018 saw Tay on “Good Morning America,” where she proclaimed, “No one is forcing me to do this.” This is a choice I’ve made. I feel fulfilled in my current role.

However, after a month, a video was released showing that her brother, Jason Tian, was providing her lines and directions on what to say. Her account was deleted, but it was later reactivated on social media.

In 2021, Lil Tay and her brother resurfaced on social media, accusing their father of physical and emotional abuse and starting a GoFundMe to garner financial support for legal representation in an effort to secure full custody of the children for their mother.

Christopher Hope at the time issued an injunction against Instagram demanding that the accusers stop their posts.