The TROVE token plummeted by 95% as traders lost interest in the project and started to sell it after the team diverted from its initial plan. Just a few hours into trading, the token went from a Fully Diluted Valuation (FDV) of $20 million to approximately $950,000, as the TROVE team strayed away from its original plan.
Initially, the launch of the TROVE token and its perpetual contract DEX was planned to be launched on the Hyperliquid platform. Overturning its initial plan, the team decided to launch it on Solana. This sudden change of plans to opt for another blockchain platform triggered the community, as it revealed the fact that the team had no solid roadmap for the project.
Looking at the facts, this is a clear fraud and a rug pull by Trove Markets. The team set out to raise $2.5 million, raised $11.5 million instead, did not refund excess funds, and then changed the roadmap immediately after the ICO closed. That alone shows a complete disregard for token holders.
Lavneet Bansal
On top of that, on-chain data flagged by ZachXBT shows $45k from ICO proceeds being sent to an on-chain casino right after the sale, which is indefensible, stated Bansal. He finally went on to say that this wasn’t about building a product, but the ulterior aim was about securing control over capital and acting in the team’s own interest.
Although the community called this a rug pull or TROVE scandal, the TROVE team made an official explanation and stated that their pivot from their plan A of launching on Hyperliquid to Solana was because their Liquidity Providers closed a position of 500K HYPE tokens due to their ‘negative sentiment.’
However, investors argue that raising money under one premise and switching to another after the ICO closes is a major red flag for any TROVE coin holder.
