Kiwibank mascot Buck becomes target of viral explicit memes

Kiwibank, a New Zealand state-owned financial institution, is facing an unexpected viral controversy involving its new mascot, an AI-generated green sheep named Buck. Originally introduced to represent “better paths, better possibilities and better outcomes,” the character became the subject of explicit and sexualized internet memes after a social media post garnered millions of views.

In response to the unauthorized use of the character's image, Kiwibank filed several copyright claims to remove the content. However, the bank's aggressive legal stance appeared to trigger a wider cycle of memes. To address the situation, the bank released a video featuring Buck, in which the mascot expresses shock at the content circulating online and highlights the broader impact of such digital behavior.