{"id":21818,"date":"2023-09-01T21:58:19","date_gmt":"2023-09-01T21:58:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nftandcrypto-news.com\/crypto\/the-story-of-a-crypto-influencers-attempt-to-bend-reality\/"},"modified":"2023-09-01T21:58:21","modified_gmt":"2023-09-01T21:58:21","slug":"the-story-of-a-crypto-influencers-attempt-to-bend-reality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nftandcrypto-news.com\/crypto\/the-story-of-a-crypto-influencers-attempt-to-bend-reality\/","title":{"rendered":"The story of a crypto influencer\u2019s attempt to bend reality"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In one of the weirder moments of my writing career, Carl \u201cThe Moon\u201d Runefelt contacted me out of the blue seeking an \u201cupdate to old information\u201d in a May 2022 article. The article had touched on his involvement with the crypto payment platform Kasta, but Runefelt felt a pressing need a year later to get the copy changed to highlight the fact he was \u201cnot the co-founder of Kasta, only [an] investor.\u201d<\/p>\n

An unusual request after so long \u2014 especially considering he had already made extensive comments after reading a prepublication draft of the original article. He\u2019d argued at one point that a mention in that article of \u201chaters\u201d who accused him of editing YouTube video titles in order to make past predictions appear accurate was \u201cclearly unprofessional.\u201d He suggested it was analogous to an article about SpaceX CEO Elon Musk\u2019s rockets including comments from flat-earthers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI gotta focus on what\u2019s real, what\u2019s correct,\u201d Runefelt said.<\/p>\n

Runefelt is a crypto influencer known for showing off a lifestyle of private jets, supercars and million-dollar watches while making faces in YouTube videos purporting to offer crypto insights and market analysis. A high-school dropout who worked as a cashier in Sweden just a few years ago, Runefelt preaches \u201cthe law of attraction,\u201d which essentially posits that one can bend reality by believing hard enough in one\u2019s desired version of it.<\/p>\n

Kasta, now called Ka.app, is the crypto app that Runefelt is apparently trying to distance himself from. As it turns out \u2014 despite his version of reality \u2014 Runefelt was indeed a co-founder.<\/p>\n

First, let\u2019s get back to Runefelt\u2019s reality. He explained that the co-founder label\u00a0 a result of confusion due to an online rumor. \u201cPeople say many different things \u2014 people say I\u2019m the billionaire, bla bla bla \u2014 something takes off, and then everyone just goes with it,\u201d he remarked with annoyance.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though I never told people my net worth, the same with me being co-founder [of Kasta] \u2014 I\u2019m just trying to clean this stuff.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The price of KASTA fell about 98% between its January 2022 launch and September 2023. Source: CoinMarketCap<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s three co-founders, and you\u2019ve never been one of them, right?\u201d I asked, referring to the three names \u2014 CEO Carl Roegind, chief technology officer Sebastian Appelberg and chief product officer Hans-Herko Lusm\u00e4gi \u2014 listed on the firm\u2019s site. \u201cExactly,\u201d Carl Runefelt replied, explaining that there was likely a mix-up of identity with the CEO, whose name is similar.<\/p>\n

After I informed Runefelt that articles \u201caren\u2019t edited after the fact unless there were mistakes at that time,\u201d Runefelt made it clear he believed a journalistic error was made \u2014 and that it needed to be rectified.<\/p>\n

I asked Runefelt to elaborate: \u201cThe theory is that I wrote \u2018co-founder\u2019 because maybe I read some third person\u2019s account \u2014 that I didn\u2019t have any first-person account, and I made an assumption. So, I made a mistake in doing that, is that what you figure?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell yeah, but no worries, no worries,\u201d Runefelt replied with what I understood to be a hint of sheepish hesitation.<\/p>\n

But there was no mistake.<\/p>\n

Reviewing our interview notes from when I visited his Dubai office in May 2022, it turned out Runefelt had clearly recounted how he co-founded Kasta.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe and my best friend, two years ago we came up with the idea,\u201d Runefelt said, \u201c[that crypto payments should be easy], that\u2019s why we founded Kasta.\u201d He explained that \u201cwe\u201d had received media attention from both Yahoo Finance and Fox Business.<\/p>\n

I confronted Runefelt by noting that the description of \u201cco-founder\u201d came not from online rumors but from his own statements. He admitted, \u201cI did help out with some brainstorming, but I may have over-exaggerated my involvement at that stage\u2026 but co-founding it, it\u2019s not accurate. I don\u2019t have equity in it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Early advisor\u2019 and \u2018early investor\u2019 \u2014 I would say that\u2019s the most accurate thing I would say \u2014 I can\u2019t come up with something more true than that.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"
Runefelt is a fan of using exclamation marks and words like EMERGENCY, ALERT, and WARNING on his YouTube channel. Source: Screenshot<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWhat you say is you\u2019ve never actually referred to yourself as co-founder or led people to believe that, which is just what I\u2019m making sure,\u201d I asked. \u201cExactly,\u201d Runefelt replied.<\/p>\n

Exactly?<\/p>\n

He had done just that on both Yahoo Finance and Fox Business \u2014 the very media references he mentioned in our May 2022 office sit-down. Appearing on a Dec. 23, 2021 Yahoo Finance video clip titled \u201cCrypto app Kasta aims to lower cost of small transactions,\u201d Runefelt delivered this opening line after being introduced as Kasta\u2019s co-founder:\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cKasta is my company. I am a co-founder.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the same video, he confirmed, \u201cWe\u2019re four co-founders, in fact.\u201d The statement received corroboration from an article by Flaunt that referred to Runefelt as a co-founder \u201calongside Carl Roegind, Hans Lusmagi and Sebastian Appelberg.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was no mistaken identity, nor a one-off. Four co-founders, not three.<\/p>\n

\n

Somebody check on The Moon Carl, bro hasn\u2019t shilled a scam in a while and is now losing his go damn mind. pic.twitter.com\/xjnDtnAxAN<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 (@RomeoTrades) March 3, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cIn a Fox Business exclusive, we have the Kasta co-founder and YouTube star Carl \u2018The Moon\u2019 Runefelt,\u2019\u201d Fox Business host Liz Claman said in an introduction for Runefelt three weeks later. The star again crowned himself with the title he now claims was a mere internet rumor:<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why I am, like you said, a co-founder and CMO of Kasta, where we\u2019re going to make crypto easier to spend.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I surprised Runefelt with this video revelation. He attempted to take it in stride, saying \u201cit was just confusion and marketing\u201d because he was \u201cnot operational\u201d within the company \u2014 despite his very operational role of appearing in the media. \u201cI\u2019m not actually a co-founder,\u201d Runefelt said. \u201cNope. And they know it and they\u2019re OK with it,\u201d he said in reference to the three \u201creal\u201d co-founders.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you went on Yahoo Finance and Fox Business and said that you were a co-founder?\u201d I asked incredulously, to which Runefelt replied, \u201cExactly. I guess I\u2019m just changing the narrative.\u201d <\/p>\n

He said this matter-of-factly and without a hint of irony \u2014 as if Cointelegraph were his personal public relations agency and narratives are something changed by declaration. Not \u201ctrying\u201d to change it \u2014 changing <\/em>it.<\/p>\n

Runefelt said that calling himself a founder of Kasta was a “mistake I did.” Source: Telegram screenshot by Elias Ahonen<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cAs I don\u2019t own equity, I can\u2019t say I\u2019m a co-founder. Which is a mistake I did,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you don\u2019t have equity, how can you possibly be a co-founder?\u201d<\/p>\n

That view does not appear to have much to back it up.<\/p>\n

Runefelt clearly said in the past that he participated in the early-stage brainstorming of the ideas on which Kasta was based and that he co-founded it with a friend. We\u2019re happy to note this for the record, despite his attempts to visualize or mindset-shift inconvenient facts away.<\/p>\n

\n

Elias Ahonen<\/strong> is a Finnish-Canadian author based in Dubai who has worked around the world operating a small blockchain consultancy after buying his first Bitcoin in 2013. His book Blockland<\/em> tells the story of the industry. He holds an MA in international and comparative law, and his thesis deals with NFT and metaverse regulation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts and opinions expressed here are the author\u2019s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n