RaveDAO denies role in RAVE pump-and-dump as exchanges probe token trading

RaveDAO denied responsibility for a rapid price surge and collapse of its RAVE token while major exchanges opened probes into trading around the token.

RAVE jumped from roughly $0.25 to nearly $28 over several days before falling more than 80%. At the time of reporting the token was trading around $1.36. The sharp rise and fall drew scrutiny from onchain analysts and exchange compliance teams.

Onchain investigator ZachXBT highlighted concentrated token holdings and movement of large amounts through exchanges, asserting that more than 90% of the supply may be controlled by insiders and urging platforms to investigate. The investigator described the transfer patterns as consistent with a coordinated pump-and-dump.

RaveDAO posted on X that it was “not engaged in, nor responsible for, recent price action,” responding to the allegations. Binance shared that it was reviewing the activity, with CEO Richard Teng writing on X, “We’re looking into it.” Bitget said it had “started investigating” RAVE trading activity, a message posted by CEO Gracy Chen.

The project said it plans to sell portions of unlocked tokens to fund operations, marketing and hiring. RaveDAO added it is exploring “price-triggered or performance-triggered locks” on token sales to better align incentives, and wrote, “Building a movement requires resources,” adding it aims to grow “sustainably and transparently.” RaveDAO operates as a Web3 entertainment project that issues NFTs to event attendees and uses the RAVE token for governance, ticketing and event access.

Onchain analysts and exchange teams are reviewing wallet histories, crypto liquidity flows and trading records to assess whether there was wash trading, coordinated selling or other market manipulation. Exchanges can pause or review listings while compliance investigations proceed; any enforcement action would follow internal reviews and available onchain evidence.

Investigations are ongoing. Exchanges and independent analysts continue to monitor wallet flows and trading records to determine whether trading rules or market norms were violated.