Binance and Bitget Launch Probe into RAVE Token's Massive 4,500% Price Surge Amid Insider Trading Allegations

Major cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and Bitget have initiated investigations into the recent trading activity surrounding RaveDAO's RAVE token, following allegations by on-chain analyst ZachXBT that insiders manipulated the market, leading to a significant short squeeze and a 4,500% price surge. Bitget's CEO, Gracy Chen, confirmed the exchange's investigation, while Binance's CEO, Richard Teng, stated that the platform is also examining the claims and will take action if signs of market misconduct are found. Another exchange, Gate, was also implicated in ZachXBT's investigation. A $10,000 bounty has been offered by ZachXBT for whistleblowers to come forward with evidence about the parties involved. The little-known project saw a massive rally, resulting in over $44 million in bearish RAVE positions being liquidated in a single day, following a week-long 4,500% price increase. However, the short squeeze highlighted the concentration of RAVE tokens within a small set of wallets, with nearly 90% of the supply held in just three Gnosis Safe wallets at the time. Investigators also noted that millions of tokens were transferred to exchanges shortly before the price surge began. RaveDAO, a Web3 project focused on electronic music events, has reported $3 million in revenue in 2025, but the token's market behavior has been highly volatile, trading below $0.50 for most of its history before surging to over $6 in a single day and briefly reaching a market value of over $6 billion. The token has since dropped by more than 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 lure traders into short positions, only to withdraw the tokens later and force short sellers to buy back at higher prices. RaveDAO has addressed the situation, stating that the team is not responsible for the recent price action, but the project's connections to earlier crypto ventures, including ARPA and Bella Protocol, have raised concerns. RaveDAO has announced plans to liquidate portions of unlocked tokens 'when appropriate' and is exploring models to tie team incentives to ecosystem growth, but has not committed to a specific mechanism or timeline.