Mark Longo, the owner of Peanut the Squirrel—a rodent that became a national sensation after being seized and euthanized by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)—has announced plans to sue all cryptocurrency exchanges listing the PNUT meme coin for trademark infringement. In a post on X, Longo stated that his legal team has already sent a cease-and-desist letter to Binance, the first of several to come.
From Instagram Fame to Meme Coin Frenzy
Longo, a 34-year-old former mechanical engineer turned social media influencer and adult content creator, rescued Peanut after its mother was killed by a car. He domesticated the squirrel and built an Instagram following of over 500,000 (now nearly 1 million), using the traffic to promote his adult content, according to Vanity Fair. In November 2024, following complaints from local wildlife rehabilitators, NYSDEC seized Peanut from Longo's home. During the seizure, Peanut bit an officer, prompting a mandatory post-mortem rabies test that required euthanasia. The incident ignited public outrage, particularly among Trump supporters who viewed it as government overreach. Within days, multiple meme coins bearing Peanut's likeness emerged, with PNUT soaring to a market cap of $2.27 billion and being listed on major exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase.
Legal Threats and Community Backlash
Longo claimed the exchanges' use of his IP was unauthorized. “My legal team initiated action against Binance for unauthorized use of my intellectual property, including images and stories featuring my beloved animals,” he wrote. “This is the first of multiple cease-and-desist letters to be issued.” He then targeted Coinbase, stating, “I'm coming for all the money earned from my IP on all exchanges. They will end up having to delist and pay serious cheddar.” While some supporters applaud his fight for ownership rights, others see it as an opportunistic cash grab. One X user commented, “What a scammer. Just lost all my sympathy for the dude.” Legal experts note that trademark infringement cases in the decentralized meme coin space remain unprecedented, and Longo's claims face significant hurdles. Nonetheless, the saga highlights the growing intersection of intellectual property law and crypto speculation.