Major cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and Bitget have initiated investigations into the recent trading activity surrounding the RAVE token, following allegations by on-chain analyst ZachXBT that insiders orchestrated a significant short squeeze, leading to the token's rapid price increase. Bitget's CEO, Gracy Chen, confirmed that the exchange has begun investigating the matter, while Binance's CEO, Richard Teng, stated that the platform is also examining the claims and will always investigate signs of market misconduct.
Another exchange, Gate, was also implicated in ZachXBT's investigation. ZachXBT has offered a $10,000 bounty to whistleblowers who can provide evidence about the parties involved. The little-known RAVE project experienced a massive rally, resulting in over $44 million in short positions being liquidated in a single day, following a 4,500% price surge over the course of a week. However, the short squeeze highlighted the concentration of RAVE tokens within a small set of wallets, with nearly 90% of its supply held in just three Gnosis Safe wallets at the time.
Investigators also flagged large token transfers to exchanges shortly before the price surge began, with millions of tokens being moved to exchanges before the prices started rising. RaveDAO, a Web3 project focused on electronic music events, offering blockchain-based ticketing and community governance, has reported $3 million in revenue in 2025. The project's token, RAVE, traded below $0.50 for most of its history before surging in April, jumping from $0.30 to over $6 in a single day and eventually climbing past $27 before starting to decline. At its peak, the token's market value briefly exceeded $6 billion, placing it among the largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization before dropping.
The token is now down more than 50% from its peak and 30% over the last 24 hours. A separate claim suggests a 'bait and liquidate' pattern, where visible transfers suggest selling pressure, drawing traders into short positions, and later withdrawing tokens while prices rise, forcing short sellers to buy back at higher prices. Community reports have linked the project to figures associated with earlier crypto ventures, although those connections have not been independently verified. RaveDAO has addressed the situation, stating that the team is not responsible for the recent price action and plans to liquidate portions of unlocked tokens 'when appropriate.' The project is exploring models that tie team incentives to ecosystem growth but has not committed to any specific mechanism or timeline.