Following allegations of a coordinated price manipulation, major cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and Bitget have initiated investigations into the trading activity surrounding RaveDAO's RAVE token. The claims, made by on-chain analyst ZachXBT, suggest that insiders may have orchestrated a large short squeeze, leading to the token's rapid price surge. Binance CEO Richard Teng and Bitget CEO Gracy Chen have both publicly stated that their respective platforms are looking into the matter.
Additionally, a $10,000 bounty has been offered by ZachXBT for any whistleblowers who come forward with evidence regarding the parties involved. The RAVE token experienced a significant price increase, resulting in over $44 million in liquidated positions, primarily due to bearish bets.
Notably, nearly 90% of the token's supply was concentrated in just three wallets at the time, and millions of tokens were transferred to exchanges shortly before the price surge began. RaveDAO, a Web3 project focused on electronic music events, has reported revenue of approximately $3 million in 2025. The project's token, however, has exhibited market behavior that contrasts with its underlying fundamentals, with its price surging from $0.30 to over $6 in a single day before receding. At its peak, the token's market value briefly exceeded $6 billion, placing it among the largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization.
The token has since dropped by over 50% from its peak and 30% in the last 24 hours. Claims of a 'bait and liquidate' pattern have also emerged, suggesting that visible transfers may be used to create the illusion of selling pressure, drawing traders into short positions, only to later withdraw the tokens and drive prices higher. While these claims remain unproven, the concentration of the token's supply does suggest that such a scenario is possible.
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 various models to tie team incentives to ecosystem growth but has not committed to any specific mechanism or timeline.