The LAB token, the native asset of multi-chain trading execution layer LABtrade, has become the center of intense community scrutiny after a dramatic 500%+ price surge in early May 2026 was followed by an 84% crash that wiped out more than $250 million in value within hours.
Multiple on-chain investigators—including prominent blockchain sleuth ZachXBT and analytics firm EmberCN—are now publicly alleging that the LAB team orchestrated coordinated price manipulation by leveraging control over a disproportionately large share of the token’s total supply to engineer artificial pumps and dumps at the expense of retail traders.
The Pump-and-Dump Mechanics
LAB’s price action followed a pattern that critics describe as a textbook low-float manipulation playbook. The token surged more than 500% in a matter of days, briefly pushing its market cap significantly higher and liquidating millions of dollars in short positions. The rally was accompanied by a reported 7,500% spike in futures trading volume.
The reversal was equally violent. LAB crashed approximately 84% within hours of the peak, wiping out over $250 million in value and liquidating leveraged long positions. At the core of the accusations are LAB’s tokenomics. Only approximately 23% of the total 1 billion LAB supply is in circulation — just 230.4 million tokens. Multiple analyses highlight that the LAB team and linked wallets retain the vast majority of total supply, creating an extremely thin float that allows insiders to exert outsized price influence with relatively minimal capital.
On-Chain Forensics: The Wallet Trail
EmberCN, a blockchain analytics firm, identified a suspected insider or market-maker wallet that accumulated approximately 575,000 LAB tokens at an average price near $0.20 — a total cost of roughly $128,000. The wallet subsequently deposited its holdings to Gate.io and KuCoin shortly before or during the surge peak, realizing an estimated $1.13 million in profit as the token experienced a tenfold increase.
Investigator Specter amplified these concerns in a widely engaged thread, mapping six wallets allegedly linked to the LAB team founder (@vsadkovv). The evidence included precisely timed exchange deposits: on April 8, a linked wallet (0xe037) moved 40 million LAB tokens — worth $13.6 million at the time — to Bitget. A week before the May 1 pump, additional wallets deposited 96 million LAB ($63 million) to the same exchange. Gas fee distributions of 0.14 BNB from related addresses suggested coordinated preparation across the wallet cluster.
A separate wallet (0x11fc) was flagged for aggressive on-chain buying of LAB alongside other volatile tokens like SkyAI, which itself saw a 1,000% surge during the same period.
ZachXBT Connects LAB to the Unresolved RAVE Probe
ZachXBT escalated the allegations publicly on May 7, directly tagging Bitget representative Gracy Chen and referencing the exchange’s unfulfilled promises regarding its investigation into the RAVE token—a case that saw a similar pattern play out just weeks earlier when RAVE surged 6,000% before crashing 95% and wiping $6 billion in value.
“The community has not received any update about the investigation of RAVE. While now LAB is running yet another market manipulation scheme via Bitget spot,” ZachXBT wrote. “Every new token running similar scams only hurts the credibility of the industry further.”
In an earlier post, ZachXBT had bluntly labeled the activity “another market manipulation scheme on CEXs by insiders,” grouping LAB with tokens like SkyAI and advising traders to avoid them entirely. He also highlighted the LAB founder’s alleged deletion of old posts and ignored direct messages, questioning the transparency surrounding any market-making arrangements.
The Low-Float Playbook
Community analysis and industry commentary describe a recurring manipulation strategy that LAB’s price action appears to fit: teams retain 80–95% of token supply while listing on major centralized exchanges. The thin circulating float means that relatively small spot buys can push the price dramatically higher.
As the price rises, short sellers are squeezed and forced to cover, amplifying the rally further. Once sufficient retail FOMO draws in leveraged long positions, insiders offload their holdings into the liquidity—leaving retail traders to absorb the crash.
As one widely shared community post noted, tokens with team-controlled supply at these levels enable manipulation “at any time.” Multiple analysts have drawn direct parallels to the RAVE case, where ZachXBT alleged that insiders controlled over 90% of supply and timed exchange deposits to coincide with price surges.
Binance Square posts reinforced concerns, labeling LAB “one of the most manipulated projects” due to influencer funding and shallow liquidity—one analysis noted actual liquidity at just $4.22 million despite the hype-driven market cap.
Team Silent, Exchanges Under Pressure
No formal charges have been filed against the LAB team. No public response from LABtrade or founder @vsadkovv has appeared in the current discourse—only reports of post deletions and silence on direct messages.
Bitget faces particular pressure given its central role in both the LAB and RAVE controversies. ZachXBT and other investigators are demanding updates on both probes. Analysts point to broader vulnerabilities in the CEX listing model, where volume-driven fee structures may inadvertently incentivize exchanges to list — and retain — tokens with manipulation-friendly tokenomics.
ZachXBT Escalates: $10K Bounty on LAB Founder
Hours after his initial posts, ZachXBT escalated further by announcing a $10,000 personal bounty — mirroring the approach he used during the RAVE investigation — targeting the LAB founder directly. “$10K bounty is now live on @vsadkovv passport/ID or insider details of the market maker (contracts, chat logs, etc) used for LAB on Bitget spot, Bybit perps, Binance perps, or OKX perps,” ZachXBT posted.
The scope of the bounty is notable: it names four major exchanges across both spot and perpetual futures markets, suggesting the alleged manipulation extended beyond a single venue.
ZachXBT described the situation as “war time mode,” adding that “these grifters are further hurting the industry reputation and it must not go unpunished.” The bounty marks a significant escalation—shifting from public pressure on exchanges to directly soliciting identity documents and contractual evidence on the individuals behind the alleged scheme. During the RAVE probe, ZachXBT’s bounty started at $10,000 and later rose to $25,000 as evidence mounted.
Project Fundamentals vs. Market Reality
LAB’s underlying platform offers multi-chain trading execution across BSC, Solana, Ethereum, and Base, with AI-powered signals and revenue sharing. The project cites over $400 million in cumulative trading volume and counts Animoca Brands, OKX Ventures, and other notable names among its backers. Its mobile app launched on May 3, the same day the price began its parabolic ascent.
But as the RAVE collapse demonstrated just weeks ago, genuine product fundamentals offer no insulation when tokenomics are structured to give insiders asymmetric control over price. LAB currently trades around $3.57, with a 23% drop in an hour after the accusations.
ZachXBT continues pressing for transparency, with a standing reward for credible intel on similar operations. The investigator has made clear he does not short these tokens, citing the manipulation dynamics that make bearish positions equally dangerous for outsiders.
