Binance and Bitget Launch Probe into RAVE Token's 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, resulting in a significant short squeeze and a 4,500% increase in the token's value. Bitget's CEO, Gracy Chen, confirmed that the exchange has started investigating the matter, while Binance CEO Richard Teng stated that the platform is also looking into the claims and will examine signs of market misconduct. Another exchange, Gate, was also implicated in ZachXBT's investigation. ZachXBT has offered a $10,000 bounty to whistleblowers who come forward with evidence about the parties involved. The little-known project's token surged earlier in the week, resulting in over $44 million in RAVE positions being liquidated in a single day, with most of these positions being bearish. 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 token transfers to exchanges shortly before the rally began, with millions of tokens being moved to exchanges before prices started surging. RaveDAO, a Web3 project focused on electronic music events, offering blockchain-based ticketing and community governance, reported around $3 million in revenue in 2025. However, the token's market behavior has been highly volatile, trading below $0.50 for most of its history before surging in April, and reaching a peak market value of over $6 billion before dropping. The token is now down more than 50% from its peak and 30% over 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, which are then forced to buy back at higher prices, driving further gains for those on the other side of the trade. RaveDAO has addressed the situation in a social media thread, stating that the team is not responsible for the recent price action, but did not address specific on-chain allegations. The project plans to liquidate portions of unlocked tokens 'when appropriate' and is exploring models that tie team incentives to ecosystem growth.