Shytoshi Kusama, the pseudonymous lead of the Shiba Inu ecosystem, publicly distanced themselves from the HAWK coin, a controversial meme coin launched by influencer Hailey Welch. Kusama revealed an unsolicited offer to promote HAWK was rejected, although an airdrop to the SHIB community was accepted. However, Kusama strongly condemned the project’s subsequent ‘pump and dump’ scheme, advising the community to avoid it.