Following allegations of insider trading, major cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and Bitget have initiated investigations into the trading activities surrounding RaveDAO's RAVE token. The probe comes after on-chain analyst ZachXBT claimed that insiders orchestrated a large short squeeze, resulting in the token's rapid price increase. Bitget's CEO, Gracy Chen, confirmed the investigation, while Binance's CEO, Richard Teng, stated that the platform would examine signs of market misconduct.
ZachXBT has offered a $10,000 bounty to whistleblowers who can provide evidence about the parties involved. The RAVE token's price surged by 4,500% over a week, resulting in over $44 million in liquidations. However, the token's price has since dropped by more than 50% from its peak. Investigators have flagged the concentration of RAVE tokens in a small set of wallets, with nearly 90% of the supply held in three Gnosis Safe wallets.
Additionally, millions of tokens were transferred to exchanges shortly before the price surge. RaveDAO, a Web3 project focused on electronic music events, has reported $3 million in revenue in 2025.
The project has denied any involvement in the recent price action, stating that it is 'not engaged in, nor responsible for, recent price action.' RaveDAO has also announced plans to liquidate portions of unlocked tokens and explore models that tie team incentives to ecosystem growth.