Manta Network has been the subject of controversy since the launch of its airdrop and listing on an exchange. South Korean crypto KOL Definalist alleged that the project’s BD received 2 million MANTA tokens on the day of listing and exchanged them for over 2,000 ETH at a high price, raising suspicions of money laundering or dumping.
(Previous situation:
MANTA soared to 3.3 USD at its opening! The website’s frontend was suspected of being attacked, and users were temporarily unable to claim the airdrop.)
(Background information:
MANTA trading opens on Binance at 6 PM! Users can claim the airdrop in advance.)
Manta Network gained attention due to its staking airdrop campaign “New Paradigm” and being selected as the 44th “New Coin Mining” project on Binance. However, after the airdrop was made available, it sparked a lot of dissatisfaction within the community, including issues such as the inability to claim the airdrop and rewards being lower than expected.
Manta team suspected of dumping/washing on Bithumb
To everyone’s surprise, South Korean crypto KOL Definalist revealed on X that the Manta team allegedly engaged in dumping or money laundering activities on the day of listing on Bithumb exchange.
According to him, Manta’s BD in South Korea’s personal wallet received up to 2 million MANTA tokens on that day. These MANTA tokens were subsequently deposited into Bithumb, accounting for over 75% of the exchange’s total circulation.
As a result, the price of MANTA skyrocketed to $230 per token within less than five minutes of listing. The BD then exchanged these 2 million MANTA tokens for 2,094.7 ETH at a price 50 to 100 times higher, worth approximately $5.162 million, and transferred them to a personal wallet.
CoinGecko data shows that the total trading volume of MANTA in the past 24 hours is nearly $800 million, with 23% of it occurring on Bithumb, making it the largest exchange for MANTA trading. Currently, its price on Bithumb is $2.35, with an 8% premium compared to the average price.
Expanding into major Asian markets: South Korea and Hong Kong
Amidst the controversy, the official Manta X account posted that “the team is expanding its business in Asia, focusing on the development and investment in the South Korean and Hong Kong markets.”
Although this is not a direct response to Definalist’s accusations, the community generally believes that this could be an indirect explanation for the 2 million MANTA tokens held by the South Korean BD. However, such an explanation does not fully dispel the suspicions of Manta team’s dumping or money laundering.
As for the special focus on Hong Kong and South Korea as its main expansion markets, Manta stated in a Medium article:
“The Korean market is of crucial importance to Manta. Most of the TVL and on-chain activities of this network are driven by projects led by South Koreans, highlighting the significant role of this region in ecosystem growth. To deepen connections with the local community, Manta is establishing a branch in South Korea to better understand and meet the needs of the Korean market and seamlessly integrate with the local web3 ecosystem.”
“Hong Kong is seen as a new growth area for Manta Network. This region has an active web3 community and holds an open attitude towards innovation and technological advancement, providing enormous expansion potential for Manta Network. The company plans to establish a branch in Hong Kong to collaborate with local developers, entrepreneurs, and enthusiasts in creating and supporting projects that meet the needs and visions of the local web3 community.”
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