PANews reported on January 20th that Trove Markets is embroiled in deeper controversy following its token generation event, with its token TROVE plummeting by over 95% within minutes of listing on Solana. The token's fully diluted valuation quickly dropped from approximately $20 million implied at the time of the public sale to less than $1 million, and the liquidity pools dried up rapidly after launch, exacerbating losses for early buyers. Previously, after raising $11.5 million, the project abruptly switched its deployment chain from Hyperliquid to Solana at the last minute, sparking community discontent. The Trove team stated it would retain approximately $9.4 million of the raised funds and offer only partial refunds, further angering participants demanding full refunds.
Numerous accusations have surfaced on social media alleging that the project team misappropriated funds, transferred funds through mixers, and conducted undisclosed influencer promotion. On-chain investigator ZachXBT publicly questioned a $45,000 SOL transaction transferred from a Trove angel round address, linked to casino deposits. The Trove team denied the "exit scam" allegations, stating that user funds remain intact and emphasizing their continued commitment to development. The project was previously incubated by Paradigm and raised $35 million in 2021 at a valuation of $400 million.


