- Ross Ulbricht’s memecoin venture resulted in a $12 million loss
- While attempting to provide liquidity on Raydium, he accidentally triggered a price drop of a Pumpfun coin
- He still holds 10% of the ROSS tokens
Apparently, Ross Ulbricht suffered a $12 million loss from a Pump.fun memecoin when he inadvertently triggered a price drop while attempting to provide liquidity on Raydium.
Due to an incorrectly initialized liquidity pool price, an MEV bot instantly seized $1.5 million worth of the token (5% of the supply) and sold it. A second error triggered another $10.5 million loss (35% of supply).
How the Mistake Happened
Last week, Ross Ulbricht’s Solana donation address received 50% of the ROSS (Ross Ulbricht Fund) supply from the developer. His attempt to passively sell these tokens by adding single-sided liquidity backfired when he mistakenly created a pool with Raydium’s Constant-Product Market Maker (CPMM) instead of the intended Concentrated Liquidity Market Maker (CLMM).
That mistake opened the door for an MEV bot, which swooped in, liquidated its holdings, and profited $600,000—sending the token price plunging 90%. Even after losing 40% of supply, Ulbricht still holds 10% in a separate wallet, this time using concentrated liquidity correctly. That remaining portion is worth around $200,000.
Who is Ross Ulbricht?
Ross Ulbricht is an American entrepreneur and convicted criminal, best known as the founder and operator of Silk Road—an infamous darknet marketplace that facilitated anonymous drug sales and other illicit transactions using Bitcoin.
Silk Road launched in February 2011 and quickly became a hub for buying and selling illegal drugs, fake IDs, hacking tools, and other illegitimate goods. It used Tor for anonymity and Bitcoin for transactions, making it difficult for law enforcement to trace users.
Related: A Second Chance at Freedom: Ross Ulbricht’s First Post After Presidential Pardon
At its peak, Silk Road handled $1.2 billion in sales, earning Ulbricht an estimated $80 million in commissions. While Silk Road’s operations were illegal, it helped showcase Bitcoin’s potential as a digital currency.
Related: Trump Pardons Ross Ulbricht, Ending Life Sentence for Silk Road Crimes
Ulbricht was arrested in 2013, and in 2015, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
In January 2025, he walked free after receiving a full and unconditional pardon from President Donald Trump.
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