A newly launched memecoin on Solana, SHAR witnessed its market capitalization skyrocket to over $50 million before crashing by 95% within hours of its launch. This sharp decline has drawn the attention of the crypto community with accusations of insider manipulation and market control or a “classic rugpull scheme”.
On-chain investigator ZachXBT took to Twitter to reveal that the potential rugpull in SHAR token is linked to a coordinated effort involving a conspiracy group and key opinion leader (KOL) manipulation. His findings have stirred concerns about the ethics and transparency in the project’s promotion.
ZachXBT said that over 50 tier-1 crypto KOLs have been associated with the SHAR project and they have shilled the token to their millions of followers. He also said that a number of KOLs from this list have deleted their promotion tweet for SHAR soon after the rugpull happened.
An earlier report from Lookonchain revealed that the insider wallet dumped 500 million SHAR tokens – equivalent to 50% of the total supply – in a single transaction, resulting in profit of 19,620 SOL or approximately $3.38 million. This massive sale was a key factor in the price collapse with wiping out 96% of SHAR’s market cap within hours.
In response to these allegations, one of the suspect 0XSun admitted to collaborating with the SHAR project but emphasized that his involvement was not purely motivated by promotional fees.
“I am really ashamed. I definitely don’t want fans to lose money. My original intention was to cooperate in promotion and publicity on the premise that I was optimistic about the project. Ideally, it would be a win-win for all three parties.” 0XSun said on Twitter, adding “However, it is really hard to prevent the project party from doing evil. In the end, both KOL and fans were victims and had to fight each other, while the project party reaped the benefits.”
The sudden crash has sparked outrage among investors, many of whom are demanding answers and compensation. As investigations continue, this incident serves as a stark reminder of the volatility and risks associated with memecoins and the importance of due diligence in the crypto space.
Also Read: ONI token’s price drop Sparks Rugpull Speculations
