Squid game is currently the most exemplary cultural phenomenon that the world of entertainment has ever known since. Starting off as a high-octane drama series, Squid game has now left an indelible cultural imprint among the countless fans of the series scattered across the world. The second season of Squid game recently dropped, sparking widespread adoration for the South Korean drama.
Season 2 featured memorable characters who were struggling with financial constraints and decided to try their luck in the live or die gaming competition.
In an example of art imitating life, season 2 featured the character Lee Myung-gi, a thirty-year-old YouTube influencer who owns an influential YouTube channel called MG Coin.
However, under the guise of a large social media presence, Lee Myung-gi is a fraudster who aims to deceive people through cryptocurrency scams. One might assume that this character that was written into the narrative emanates from a real-life cryptocurrency scam that shook the world in 2021, when scammers developed a Bitcoin Squid Game token or the Squid, and although it has no affiliation with the Netflix show ended up scamming investors out of millions of dollars.
Who is Lee Myung-gi Squid game season 2?
The character of Lee Myung-gi is introduced in season 2 as a participant in the deadly games. At one point, he is seen arguing with the games’ moderators, demanding his cell phone be returned. The moderators dryly tell him that the participants will get their phones back once the games are over, but Myung-gi can’t sit still with that knowledge.
Myung-gi has the incessant habit of constantly monitoring Bitcoin prices via his phone. While alluding to the volatile nature of the Bitcoin market, the show also commented on the criminal transactions that take place, often without censorship, in the cryptocurrency space. According to the story, Myung-gi is a criminal on the run, doing his best to escape justice.
Before entering gaming, Myung-gi had promoted a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme with the Dalmation coin. This ultimately led to defrauding investors out of billions of won and since then, Myung-gi has been on the run. He could have participated in the games in the hope of making his fortune and repaying his debts.
The real world Squid game cryptocurrency scam
Back in 2021, a real world Squid game The cryptocurrency scam has made headlines. Although cryptocurrency scams are not new, this case was indeed new since the mechanism of the scam centered around the popularity of the Netflix show. As part of this scam, following the immense popularity of the first season of the show in 2021, the scammers developed a cryptocurrency token/coin under the name Squid Game token or simply Squid.
Besides, it was in no way affiliated with the series. The scammers lured investors with the idea of “play to win” whereby users could first purchase the token and play the games in order to win more tokens which could then be exchanged for fiat currency or another cryptocurrency.
Initially, with the price of the token being less than a dollar, many investors joined the purchase offer. Soon, the token’s value skyrocketed and reached a high of $2,861. That’s when the scammers pulled the rug out from under them and disappeared, having transferred millions into their own funds.
Edited by Amey Mirashi
