Binance Launchpool Manta Network Accused of Money Laundering Post-Bithumb Launch

In the dynamic world of cryptocurrency, the debut of Manta Network on Bithumb‘s exchange platform has stirred significant controversy. Accusations of money laundering have surfaced, casting a shadow over the Launchpool project by Binance. These allegations emerged primarily from a Twitter user’s claims, focusing on the dubious handling of Manta tokens (MANTA) on the listing day.

The core of the controversy lies in an alleged transaction, where 2 million MANTA tokens were moved to a wallet thought to belong to Manta Network’s Korean Business Development leader. While these allegations remain unverified and speculative, they raise serious questions. It’s claimed that this vast sum of tokens, representing over three-quarters of Bithumb’s MANTA circulation volume, was deposited into a Bithumb deposit wallet.

This development coincided with a dramatic fluctuation in MANTA’s price on Bithumb. Within a mere 5 minutes of its listing, MANTA’s value soared to an incredible 300,000 KRW ($230), only to crash back to around 3,000 KRW shortly after. These erratic price movements further fueled the speculation.

Manta Network and Bithumb: A Tumultuous Partnership

The situation escalated when the accuser suggested that the individual in question sold all 2 million MANTA tokens at the peak price. This sale was allegedly converted into a hefty sum of approximately 2,094.7 ETH, equivalent to around $5,162,112, which was then transferred to a personal wallet.

This incident isn’t an isolated case for Binance Launchpool projects. Manta Network also suffered a severe Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attack. P0xeidon Labs’ co-founder, Kenny Li, reported that the attack involved over 135 million RPC requests targeting the blockchain’s nodes on January 18. Li reassured stakeholders about the blockchain’s normal functioning and the safety of funds post-attack.

These concerns highlight a recurring challenge for Binance Launchpool projects. Blockchain security firm PeckShield has reported several instances of fraud, where scammers launched counterfeit tokens, such as Sleepless AI and FomoFi, to capitalize on the hype around their official Launchpool debuts. These deceptive activities not only mislead investors but also cause substantial financial losses, as seen in the significant price drops of these fake tokens following the exposure of the scams.