LAB insiders tighten grip as ZachXBT rips into exchange-fueled token game

Blockchain investigator ZachXBT has accused the LAB project of orchestrating a large-scale market manipulation scheme that allegedly left retail investors exposed while insiders maintained control over more than 95% of the token supply.

• ZachXBT accused the LAB project and founder Vova Sadkov of concealing token distribution data and manipulating supply.
• The on-chain investigator claimed insiders likely control more than 95% of LAB tokens while retail investors remain unaware of the real circulation.
• The allegations also include changed lock-up terms, unpaid marketing fees, and suspicious exchange-related token movements worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

According to reports published by ChainCatcher, the project’s fully diluted valuation surged to roughly $6 billion despite what ZachXBT described as opaque circulation data and undisclosed insider allocations.

The allegations center on LAB founders Vova Sadkov and Mark, who were previously involved with the Eesee project. ZachXBT claimed the team failed to clearly disclose token distribution while insiders and affiliated market makers allegedly retained overwhelming control of the circulating supply. He further alleged that wallets tied to insiders recently withdrew more than 100 million LAB tokens from exchanges, representing hundreds of millions of dollars in value.

ZachXBT also accused the project of unilaterally extending the public-sale lock-up period from three months to nine months while simultaneously offering preferential treatment to key opinion leaders and whales. According to the report, some influencers were allegedly required to publish promotional content in exchange for favorable access to tokens and liquidity arrangements.

ZachXBT calls for exchange investigation

The on-chain sleuth urged centralized exchanges to investigate LAB-related trading activity and potentially freeze suspicious funds. In a separate ChainCatcher report discussing the broader impact of ZachXBT’s investigations, the investigator warned that highly concentrated token ownership structures can create conditions for extreme price manipulation and coordinated dumping activity.

ZachXBT specifically noted that his comments should not be interpreted as encouragement to short the token, arguing that concentrated insider ownership could instead “become fuel” for squeezes against bearish traders. The warning echoed concerns he previously raised during the collapse of the RAVE token ecosystem, where he alleged insiders controlled between 90% and 95% of supply before a dramatic selloff erased billions in paper value, according to a previous crypto.news story.

The LAB controversy adds to a growing list of investigations tied to ZachXBT this year. Earlier reports from crypto.news detailed his accusations against Circle over allegedly failing to freeze more than $420 million in illicit USDC flows, as well as his criticism of religion-themed token launches in another crypto.news story.

While LAB has not publicly responded to the latest accusations, the controversy is likely to intensify scrutiny around token distribution transparency, exchange oversight, and insider market activity across the crypto sector.