The scandal involving movement labs co-founder rushi manche, where a significant portion of move tokens (5% of total supply) was rapidly dumped through opaque market-making deals, has generated industry-wide anxiety. this incident highlights severe issues of insider trading and lack of transparency in early-stage token allocations, prompting intensified scrutiny from exchanges, investors, and regulators across the altcoin sector.
The report is a detailed investigation by coindesk, a reputable crypto news outlet, based on obtained internal documents and follow-up actions by movement labs (suspension and firing of manche, delisting of move token).
The heightened anxiety, increased regulatory scrutiny, and erosion of investor trust resulting from this scandal will likely lead to reduced capital allocation and a more cautious, bearish sentiment towards new token launches and riskier altcoin projects, especially those with opaque tokenomics.
Changes in regulatory oversight, investor due diligence practices, and exchange listing standards typically have long-lasting effects on market behavior and project fundraising in the crypto space.
Tech Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Most Influential: Rushi Manche The Movement Labs’ co-founder’s secret dealings and subsequent scandal stoked industry-wide anxieties about opaque token allocations and insider trading. By Margaux Nijkerk | Edited by Cheyenne Ligon Dec 10, 2025, 3:00 p.m. Before Rushi Manche’s ousting from Movement Labs, the crypto infrastructure startup he co-founded with fellow Vanderbilt University dropout Cooper Scanlon, he was a rising young star in the DeFi world. STORY CONTINUES BELOW Don't miss another story. Subscribe to the The Protocol Newsletter today . See all newsletters Sign me up By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . But in April 2025, the buzzy project became embroiled in a scandal over hidden market-making deals connected to MOVE’s token launch. Internal documents obtained by CoinDesk showed that Movement Labs, under Manche’s leadership, had signed a contentious contract with a little-known intermediary firm, Rentech, which served simultaneously as a supposed subsidiary of the listed market-maker Web3Port and as an agent for the project. That structure gave Rentech control over roughly 66 million MOVE tokens —about 5% of the total supply —which were rapidly dumped on the market. The dumping immediately caused a sharp collapse in MOVE’s price and widespread investor backlash. As scrutiny intensified, major exchanges, including Coinbase , either suspended or delisted the token. A few days after the initial scandal was revealed, Movement Labs suspended Manche pending a third-party governance review. After that, it didn’t take long for the company to announce Manche’s firing . The scandal led to a leadership shake-up, reputational damage for the project, and a steep fall in token value. But beyond that, it fueled industry-wide anxiety about opaque token allocations and insider trading risks, prompting exchanges, investors and regulators to intensify scrutiny of early-stage token deals across the crypto sector. Read more: Inside Movement’s Token-Dump Scandal: Secret Contracts, Shadow Advisers and Hidden Middlemen Insider Trading Token Sales CoinDesk Most Influential 2025 More For You Protocol Research: GoPlus Security By CoinDesk Research Nov 14, 2025 Commissioned by GoPlus What to know : As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M. GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month. Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B. View Full Report More For You Helium Expands to Brazil With Mambo WiFi in DePIN Breakthrough By Margaux Nijkerk , AI Boost | Edited by Oliver Knight 1 hour ago The partnership represents one of Helium’s most significant international expansions so far. What to know : Helium, a decentralized wireless network built on Solana, is entering the Brazilian market through a joint venture with local WiFi provider Mambo WiFi. The partnership represents one of Helium’s most significant international expansions so far and could set the stage for carrier integrations in a country where reliable internet access remains uneven. Read full story Latest Crypto News Most Influential: The Lazarus Group 3 minutes ago Most Influential: Pump.fun 3 minutes ago Most Influential: Hayden Davis 3 minutes ago Most Influential: The Wrench Attackers 3 minutes ago Ether Digital Asset Treasury Companies Outpace Peers as Crypto Tailwinds Build: B. Riley 11 minutes ago BONK Slips as Governance Vote Nears, Testing Key Technical Support 13 minutes ago Top Stories Eric Trump's American Bitcoin and Anthony Pompliano's ProCap Add to BTC Holdings 43 minutes ago Telegram Ring Ran Pump-and-Dump Network That Netted $800K in a Month: Solidus Labs 1 hour ago Superstate Rolls Out Direct Stock Issuance for Public Companies on Ethereum, Solana 2 hours ago Bitcoin Volatility Is Still Compressing, Dimming Year-End Rally Outlook 1 hour ago Crypto Markets Today: Fed Rate-Cut Hopes Lift BTC, ETH as Traders Brace for Volatility 3 hours ago Binance Co-CEO Yi He’s WeChat Account Hacked to Push Memecoin MUBARA 9 hours ago