Independent researcher ZachXBT has published a spreadsheet containing the handles, follower counts, and price to have an influencer shill for an obscure cryptocurrency.
On Monday, an independent researcher who exposes hacks and scams in the world of crypto published a purported list of influencers and how much they charge to "shill" crypto projects on Twitter. The list quickly went viral, starting a conversation about how essentially any cryptocurrency project can simply pay influencers to retweet or promote their projects to hundreds of thousands or millions of people on social media.
The spreadsheet includes dozens of influencers including current and former professional athletes and Lindsay Lohan, many with tens of thousands of followers and in some cases verified accounts. Motherboard reviewed the Twitter feeds of dozens of the accounts on the list, and many of them claim in their profiles that they promote crypto projects. Some of them say, specifically, that they "shill" crypto. Some of them are self-claimed "crypto promoters" or "crypto influencers." Many have contact info for paid partnerships or promotions. Others don't, and even advise that their tweets are "not financial advice."
All of the accounts Motherboard reviewed regularly promote obscure coins, NFTs, and other cryptocurrency projects.
