Is Being Wordy Equal to Researching? Crypto KOL Grassroots Movement Award

By: blockbeats|2025/04/11 17:00:03
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The Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) in the crypto community are perhaps the most linguistically artistic group in this industry. They can use "long-termism" to beautify a reversion to the mean curve, package "ecosystem empowerment" to explain unlocking selling pressure, and even write "referral link" as "free benefit." While retail investors are still studying the whitepaper, KOLs have already mastered the traffic cipher—gilding the sickle with rhetoric. There is no true selfless sharing here; behind every piece of jargon from KOLs lies the same implicit message: "I'm responsible for creating dreams, you're responsible for footing the bill." BlockBeats has compiled this KOL Crypto Jargon Translation Guide because in this market full of amateur actors, understanding the subtext is the key to avoiding being an extra.

The previous issue covered whale dump behavior, you can refer to: "How did the whales dump in this cycle? See what mistakes you've made?"

「Alpha Call」

「Alpha Call」 is the most eye-catching catchphrase in KOLs' tweets, translated as "I've found a hidden gem project, get in quick!" However, the truth is often that the KOL has already accumulated a position at a low price and is afraid the project won't take off. So, they throw out an Alpha Call to summon fans to carry the sedan chair. If the project really takes off, everyone is happy, and the KOL can retweet to boast, "Look, how great my vision is!" If it doesn't take off? The next tweet is already on its way, anyways, the fans' memory only lasts three days.

KOLs who shout Alpha Calls are like casino dealers—the louder they shout, the hotter their chips are. They're not afraid if you lose; they're just afraid you won't play.

Shady Behavior:

1. The economic model is benchmarked against $DOGE but with a more aggressive burn mechanism—we've crowned the native dog a mathematician

2. The community consensus is extremely strong, with the Telegram group surpassing tens of thousands in three hours—the bots are in place; we only lack real people to fill the gaps

3. The technical team is from MIT and NASA—the founder's names are possibly Mitchell, Ian, Tony

You can stay or leave, I don't care, I'll just run once I receive the coins

"Bullish" is the most common term in KOL tweets, succinct and emotional. As for "bullish for the long term," it's a versatile tool for both attack and defense. If it suddenly pumps, quickly dig out old tweets: "See, I've been bullish on it for a long time!" A short-term crash is just "market sentiment fluctuation, with long-term value unchanged." A prolonged downtrend is simply "the ecosystem needs time to settle; holding is winning."

The truth may be that the project team replaced the marketing and promotion costs with tokens, and as soon as the tokens arrived at the KOL's address, they were immediately converted to U.

Classic Lines:

1. First Week: A short-term pullback is a healthy shakeout

2. First Month: A bear market just happens to refine the product

3. Third Month: The team is developing a new blockchain game, with a dual-track layout

4. Six Months Later: Beware of fake official websites, recognize the community-rebuilt version

More Words, More Investment Research

KOLs will slightly modify the promotional material provided by the project team, add some technical terms and charts, and transform it into "in-depth analysis." Whether the analysis is accurate or not is not important; as long as the lengthy content makes fans feel professional, it is sufficient. Some go even further by directly inserting content generated by ChatGPT into their tweets, without bothering to adjust the AI's bold formatting.

Investigating a project is not researching it; it is "investing money to research." KOLs earn advertisement fees, while retail investors lose real money.

Furthermore, KOLs use the excuse "many institutions have invested" as a get-out-of-jail-free card, which not only elevates the project's status but also whitewashes themselves— "So many people have invested, can't blame me if you lose, right?" As for which institutions invested and how much, the details are vague, but fans usually do not bother to check.

Grassroots Behavior:

1. Strategic Investment—Gave away 5% of tokens in exchange for recognition

2. Ecosystem Cooperation—Invited an institutional intern to join the Telegram group

3. Institutional Matrix—The same boss registered 7 offshore companies

Comparative Literature

"Compared to XX, there is still XX times potential" is a valuation trick that KOLs love to use. For example, "$XXX compared to ETH, currently only a market cap of tens of millions, has a hundredfold potential!" As to why it can be compared and how to achieve a hundredfold increase, KOLs never explain, but when fans see "hundredfold," they get excited; if it rises, they believe in their foresight, if it falls, they attribute it to the market's lack of evolution.

Classic Lines:

1. Throughput is 100 times that of Ethereum—The testnet has not been launched yet

2. The ecosystem fund exceeds $500 million—The token's value automatically increases after unlocking

3. Already partnered with Amazon Web Services—Used AWS servers

Free Group "Trap"

Some free groups established by KOLs require members to use specific exchange platform links, which is understandable. However, the "research reports" in the group files are actually Google Translate versions of whitepapers. When members question why the recommended coins have all plummeted, the administrators say, "Your understanding is lacking; even multiple layers of wealth passwords cannot catch this."

Classic Buzzwords:

1. Knowledge Payment — Selling Courses + Referral Marketing

2. Limited-time Benefit — If I don't sell at this price, how will I unload my inventory

3. Exclusive Strategy — Using your fees to maintain my Porsche

The essence of the Crypto Influencer (KOL) economy is "Attention Arbitrage," exchanging emotional value for traffic, traffic for money, and then using money to create more emotional value. However, this article does not intend to categorically criticize all KOLs conducting research and analysis in the crypto field. As mentioned by Yond, KOLs need to bring in traffic and new buyers, with lower fan awareness being preferable. Ideally, they should be able to shout out a ticker symbol without much fanfare to attract blind followers. Content creators also need to consider the logic, completeness, and depth of their content. Content aimed at advanced players and sophisticated users usually does not trigger significant buying pressure. The ROI from project-sponsored promotions is low, which to some extent leads to the prevalence of inferior projects over quality, resulting in an increasing market noise.

Essentially, KOLs do not directly create value and positive externalities. When service providers and toll collectors become the biggest beneficiaries in the market, the entire market resembles a cancer patient with a growing tumor. The inevitable outcome is that the cancer cells will thrive as the host dwindles after being drained of nutrients.

If "everyone is a KOL," then real KOLs will no longer be individuals with "a certain number of followers" but those who can consistently produce high-quality content, build deep trust, and have commercial monetization capabilities. This implies that the threshold for KOLs will rise, shifting from "quantity competition" to "quality competition."

When KOLs talk about the big picture, the retail investors' wallets are shrinking. When KOLs discuss faith, the project's tokens are making an exit. When everyone is teaching you how to get rich quickly, not being the fuel itself is a victory. After all, in the crypto world, longevity is the true mark of success. Feel free to share in the comments section any grassroot behaviors exhibited by KOLs that you have witnessed.

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China's Central Bank and Eight Other Departments' Latest Regulatory Focus: Key Attention to RWA Tokenized Asset Risk


Foreword: Today, the People's Bank of China's website published the "Notice of the People's Bank of China, National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Public Security, State Administration for Market Regulation, China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, China Securities Regulatory Commission, State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Further Preventing and Dealing with Risks Related to Virtual Currency and Others (Yinfa [2026] No. 42)", the latest regulatory requirements from the eight departments including the central bank, which are basically consistent with the regulatory requirements of recent years. The main focus of the regulation is on speculative activities such as virtual currency trading, exchanges, ICOs, overseas platform services, and this time, regulatory oversight of RWA has been added, explicitly prohibiting RWA tokenization, stablecoins (especially those pegged to the RMB). The following is the full text:


To the people's governments of all provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps:


  Recently, there have been speculative activities related to virtual currency and Real-World Assets (RWA) tokenization, disrupting the economic and financial order and jeopardizing the property security of the people. In order to further prevent and address the risks related to virtual currency and Real-World Assets tokenization, effectively safeguard national security and social stability, in accordance with the "Law of the People's Republic of China on the People's Bank of China," "Law of the People's Republic of China on Commercial Banks," "Securities Law of the People's Republic of China," "Law of the People's Republic of China on Securities Investment Funds," "Law of the People's Republic of China on Futures and Derivatives," "Cybersecurity Law of the People's Republic of China," "Regulations of the People's Republic of China on the Administration of Renminbi," "Regulations on Prevention and Disposal of Illegal Fundraising," "Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Foreign Exchange Administration," "Telecommunications Regulations of the People's Republic of China," and other provisions, after reaching consensus with the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Supreme People's Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and with the approval of the State Council, the relevant matters are notified as follows:


  I. Clarify the essential attributes of virtual currency, Real-World Assets tokenization, and related business activities


  (I) Virtual currency does not possess the legal status equivalent to fiat currency. Virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, Ether, Tether, etc., have the main characteristics of being issued by non-monetary authorities, using encryption technology and distributed ledger or similar technology, existing in digital form, etc. They do not have legal tender status, should not and cannot be circulated and used as currency in the market.


  The business activities related to virtual currency are classified as illegal financial activities. The exchange of fiat currency and virtual currency within the territory, exchange of virtual currencies, acting as a central counterparty in buying and selling virtual currencies, providing information intermediary and pricing services for virtual currency transactions, token issuance financing, and trading of virtual currency-related financial products, etc., fall under illegal financial activities, such as suspected illegal issuance of token vouchers, unauthorized public issuance of securities, illegal operation of securities and futures business, illegal fundraising, etc., are strictly prohibited across the board and resolutely banned in accordance with the law. Overseas entities and individuals are not allowed to provide virtual currency-related services to domestic entities in any form.


  A stablecoin pegged to a fiat currency indirectly fulfills some functions of the fiat currency in circulation. Without the consent of relevant authorities in accordance with the law and regulations, any domestic or foreign entity or individual is not allowed to issue a RMB-pegged stablecoin overseas.


(II)Tokenization of Real-World Assets refers to the use of encryption technology and distributed ledger or similar technologies to transform ownership rights, income rights, etc., of assets into tokens (tokens) or other interests or bond certificates with token (token) characteristics, and carry out issuance and trading activities.


  Engaging in the tokenization of real-world assets domestically, as well as providing related intermediary, information technology services, etc., which are suspected of illegal issuance of token vouchers, unauthorized public offering of securities, illegal operation of securities and futures business, illegal fundraising, and other illegal financial activities, shall be prohibited; except for relevant business activities carried out with the approval of the competent authorities in accordance with the law and regulations and relying on specific financial infrastructures. Overseas entities and individuals are not allowed to illegally provide services related to the tokenization of real-world assets to domestic entities in any form.


  II. Sound Work Mechanism


  (III) Inter-agency Coordination. The People's Bank of China, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, and other departments, will improve the work mechanism, strengthen coordination with the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Supreme People's Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, coordinate efforts, and overall guide regions to carry out risk prevention and disposal of virtual currency-related illegal financial activities.


  The China Securities Regulatory Commission, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, the People's Bank of China, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, and other departments, will improve the work mechanism, strengthen coordination with the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Supreme People's Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, coordinate efforts, and overall guide regions to carry out risk prevention and disposal of illegal financial activities related to the tokenization of real-world assets.


  (IV) Strengthening Local Implementation. The people's governments at the provincial level are overall responsible for the prevention and disposal of risks related to virtual currencies and the tokenization of real-world assets in their respective administrative regions. The specific leading department is the local financial regulatory department, with participation from branches and dispatched institutions of the State Council's financial regulatory department, telecommunications regulators, public security, market supervision, and other departments, in coordination with cyberspace departments, courts, and procuratorates, to improve the normalization of the work mechanism, effectively connect with the relevant work mechanisms of central departments, form a cooperative and coordinated working pattern between central and local governments, effectively prevent and properly handle risks related to virtual currencies and the tokenization of real-world assets, and maintain economic and financial order and social stability.


  III. Strengthened Risk Monitoring, Prevention, and Disposal


  (5) Enhanced Risk Monitoring. The People's Bank of China, China Securities Regulatory Commission, National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Public Security, State Administration of Foreign Exchange, Cyberspace Administration of China, and other departments continue to improve monitoring techniques and system support, enhance cross-departmental data analysis and sharing, establish sound information sharing and cross-validation mechanisms, promptly grasp the risk situation of activities related to virtual currency and real-world asset tokenization. Local governments at all levels give full play to the role of local monitoring and early warning mechanisms. Local financial regulatory authorities, together with branches and agencies of the State Council's financial regulatory authorities, as well as departments of cyberspace and public security, ensure effective connection between online monitoring, offline investigation, and fund tracking, efficiently and accurately identify activities related to virtual currency and real-world asset tokenization, promptly share risk information, improve early warning information dissemination, verification, and rapid response mechanisms.


  (6) Strengthened Oversight of Financial Institutions, Intermediaries, and Technology Service Providers. Financial institutions (including non-bank payment institutions) are prohibited from providing account opening, fund transfer, and clearing services for virtual currency-related business activities, issuing and selling financial products related to virtual currency, including virtual currency and related financial products in the scope of collateral, conducting insurance business related to virtual currency, or including virtual currency in the scope of insurance liability. Financial institutions (including non-bank payment institutions) are prohibited from providing custody, clearing, and settlement services for unauthorized real-world asset tokenization-related business and related financial products. Relevant intermediary institutions and information technology service providers are prohibited from providing intermediary, technical, or other services for unauthorized real-world asset tokenization-related businesses and related financial products.


  (7) Enhanced Management of Internet Information Content and Access. Internet enterprises are prohibited from providing online business venues, commercial displays, marketing, advertising, or paid traffic diversion services for virtual currency and real-world asset tokenization-related business activities. Upon discovering clues of illegal activities, they should promptly report to relevant departments and provide technical support and assistance for related investigations and inquiries. Based on the clues transferred by the financial regulatory authorities, the cyberspace administration, telecommunications authorities, and public security departments should promptly close and deal with websites, mobile applications (including mini-programs), and public accounts engaged in virtual currency and real-world asset tokenization-related business activities in accordance with the law.


  (8) Strengthened Entity Registration and Advertisement Management. Market supervision departments strengthen entity registration and management, and enterprise and individual business registrations must not contain terms such as "virtual currency," "virtual asset," "cryptocurrency," "crypto asset," "stablecoin," "real-world asset tokenization," or "RWA" in their names or business scopes. Market supervision departments, together with financial regulatory authorities, legally enhance the supervision of advertisements related to virtual currency and real-world asset tokenization, promptly investigating and handling relevant illegal advertisements.


  (IX) Continued Rectification of Virtual Currency Mining Activities. The National Development and Reform Commission, together with relevant departments, strictly controls virtual currency mining activities, continuously promotes the rectification of virtual currency mining activities. The people's governments of various provinces take overall responsibility for the rectification of "mining" within their respective administrative regions. In accordance with the requirements of the National Development and Reform Commission and other departments in the "Notice on the Rectification of Virtual Currency Mining Activities" (NDRC Energy-saving Building [2021] No. 1283) and the provisions of the "Guidance Catalog for Industrial Structure Adjustment (2024 Edition)," a comprehensive review, investigation, and closure of existing virtual currency mining projects are conducted, new mining projects are strictly prohibited, and mining machine production enterprises are strictly prohibited from providing mining machine sales and other services within the country.


  (X) Severe Crackdown on Related Illegal Financial Activities. Upon discovering clues to illegal financial activities related to virtual currency and the tokenization of real-world assets, local financial regulatory authorities, branches of the State Council's financial regulatory authorities, and other relevant departments promptly investigate, determine, and properly handle the issues in accordance with the law, and seriously hold the relevant entities and individuals legally responsible. Those suspected of crimes are transferred to the judicial authorities for processing according to the law.


 (XI) Severe Crackdown on Related Illegal and Criminal Activities. The Ministry of Public Security, the People's Bank of China, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, as well as judicial and procuratorial organs, in accordance with their respective responsibilities, rigorously crack down on illegal and criminal activities related to virtual currency, the tokenization of real-world assets, such as fraud, money laundering, illegal business operations, pyramid schemes, illegal fundraising, and other illegal and criminal activities carried out under the guise of virtual currency, the tokenization of real-world assets, etc.


  (XII) Strengthen Industry Self-discipline. Relevant industry associations should enhance membership management and policy advocacy, based on their own responsibilities, advocate and urge member units to resist illegal financial activities related to virtual currency and the tokenization of real-world assets. Member units that violate regulatory policies and industry self-discipline rules are to be disciplined in accordance with relevant self-regulatory management regulations. By leveraging various industry infrastructure, conduct risk monitoring related to virtual currency, the tokenization of real-world assets, and promptly transfer issue clues to relevant departments.


  IV. Strict Supervision of Domestic Entities Engaging in Overseas Business Activities


(XIII) Without the approval of relevant departments in accordance with the law and regulations, domestic entities and foreign entities controlled by them may not issue virtual currency overseas.


  (XIV) Domestic entities engaging directly or indirectly in overseas external debt-based tokenization of real-world assets, or conducting asset securitization activities abroad based on domestic ownership rights, income rights, etc. (hereinafter referred to as domestic equity), should be strictly regulated in accordance with the principles of "same business, same risk, same rules." The National Development and Reform Commission, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, and other relevant departments regulate it according to their respective responsibilities. For other forms of overseas real-world asset tokenization activities based on domestic equity by domestic entities, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, together with relevant departments, supervise according to their division of responsibilities. Without the consent and filing of relevant departments, no unit or individual may engage in the above-mentioned business.


  (15) Overseas subsidiaries and branches of domestic financial institutions providing Real World Asset Tokenization-related services overseas shall do so legally and prudently. They shall have professional personnel and systems in place to effectively mitigate business risks, strictly implement customer onboarding, suitability management, anti-money laundering requirements, and incorporate them into the domestic financial institutions' compliance and risk management system. Intermediaries and information technology service providers offering Real World Asset Tokenization services abroad based on domestic equity or conducting Real World Asset Tokenization business in the form of overseas debt for domestic entities directly or indirectly venturing abroad must strictly comply with relevant laws and regulations. They should establish and improve relevant compliance and internal control systems in accordance with relevant normative requirements, strengthen business and risk control, and report the business developments to the relevant regulatory authorities for approval or filing.


  V. Strengthen Organizational Implementation


  (16) Strengthen organizational leadership and overall coordination. All departments and regions should attach great importance to the prevention of risks related to virtual currencies and Real World Asset Tokenization, strengthen organizational leadership, clarify work responsibilities, form a long-term effective working mechanism with centralized coordination, local implementation, and shared responsibilities, maintain high pressure, dynamically monitor risks, effectively prevent and mitigate risks in an orderly and efficient manner, legally protect the property security of the people, and make every effort to maintain economic and financial order and social stability.


  (17) Widely carry out publicity and education. All departments, regions, and industry associations should make full use of various media and other communication channels to disseminate information through legal and policy interpretation, analysis of typical cases, and education on investment risks, etc. They should promote the illegality and harm of virtual currencies and Real World Asset Tokenization-related businesses and their manifestations, fully alert to potential risks and hidden dangers, and enhance public awareness and identification capabilities for risk prevention.


  VI. Legal Responsibility


  (18) Engaging in illegal financial activities related to virtual currencies and Real World Asset Tokenization in violation of this notice, as well as providing services for virtual currencies and Real World Asset Tokenization-related businesses, shall be punished in accordance with relevant regulations. If it constitutes a crime, criminal liability shall be pursued according to the law. For domestic entities and individuals who knowingly or should have known that overseas entities illegally provided virtual currency or Real World Asset Tokenization-related services to domestic entities and still assisted them, relevant responsibilities shall be pursued according to the law. If it constitutes a crime, criminal liability shall be pursued according to the law.


  (19) If any unit or individual invests in virtual currencies, Real World Asset Tokens, and related financial products against public order and good customs, the relevant civil legal actions shall be invalid, and any resulting losses shall be borne by them. If there are suspicions of disrupting financial order and jeopardizing financial security, the relevant departments shall deal with them according to the law.


  This notice shall enter into force upon the date of its issuance. The People's Bank of China and ten other departments' "Notice on Further Preventing and Dealing with the Risks of Virtual Currency Trading Speculation" (Yinfa [2021] No. 237) is hereby repealed.


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