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"Movement Labs" announced the suspension of co-founder "Roshi Manchi" following the exposure of a controversial deal with a market-making company that led to the sale of $38 million worth of MOVEs, causing its trading to be banned on the Binance and Coinbase platforms, amid a wave of sharp criticism from investors.
The deal, initially presented as a standard liquidity agreement, later transformed into a series of allegations of fraud, involving unknown intermediaries, and left a significant impact on the project's reputation and the digital currency "MOVE."
Leaked documents reveal that the "Movement" Foundation signed an agreement with an external company called "Rentech," linked to the Singaporean financier "Jalin Lu-Kun," to provide liquidity through the Chinese company "Web3Port."
Under the agreement, approximately 66 million MOVE coins, about 5% of the circulating supply, were transferred to "Web3Port" in a deal that legal experts described as unusual and fraught with risks, including a clause allowing the liquidation of coins when the project's value reaches $5 billion, with profit-sharing.
When MOVE was listed on the Binance platform on December 9, 2024, wallets associated with Web3Port began selling large amounts of MOVE digital currency, resulting in intense selling pressure amounting to $38 million.
As a result, Binance blocked the activity of the involved market maker, and Coinbase later suspended trading of the currency, considering it did not meet the listing requirements, which deepened the crisis.
In the midst of these events, "Manchi" was placed on administrative leave, and an independent investigation was launched by "Groom Lake" to assess the governance aspects and internal controls of the foundation.
"Movement Labs" stated that the decision came in response to the deteriorating situation and the need for an impartial review.
Despite denying direct involvement, "Manchi" indicated that he was deceived by one of the team members, specifically the unofficial advisor "Sam Thabalia," founder of the "Zebec" project, who allegedly exerted undisclosed influence, received sensitive communications, and was present during critical launch moments at the San Francisco office.
The decline in confidence was immediately reflected in the price, as the MOVE cryptocurrency lost more than 27% of its value, dropping from $0.2543 to $0.1848, amidst uncertainty about the future of the project.
