YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — The recent launch of the SatoshiVM (SAVM) token has sparked accusations, with the project being labeled as the latest scam in the crypto world. The controversy, which includes allegations of insider trading and fake airdrops, has social media platforms abuzz.
At the heart of the SatoshiVM scam lie two names: MacnBTC, a SatoshiVM adviser, and Ape Terminal, the launch platform for SAVM.
The two, who worked together around the launch, accused each other of scamming the community.
How did the alleged SatoshiVM scam unfold?
The fiasco began after MacnBTC made a shocking post for his 500,000 followers on X (formerly Twitter). In his write-up, he accused Ape Terminal of allocating all 210,000 SAVM tokens to Ape Terminal’s team members despite the initial promise to distribute them fairly among a pool of entrants.
Moreover, the team was supposed to allocate 100 winners with $1,000 SAVM tokens each, which it failed to do. Instead, it declared only ten winners, all of whom were also allegedly a part of the Ape Terminal team.
“200,000 wallets applied to win the IDOs and 10 winners got chosen per IDO. All of the winners was the Ape Terminal team. On top of that they took a 25% fee that they also kept. I introduced The Ape Terminal to the SatoshiVM team, but sadly could it looks like it was impossible to trust them doing a fair sale,”
he alleged in his post.
This accusation led to a heated dispute between MacnBTC and Ape Terminal over who was to blame for the SatoshiVM scam.
The controversy was brewing after on-chain data revealed that the team members linked to SatoshiVM had also made millions from the launch. Analysis by LookOnChain from Jan. 22 indicated that a wallet associated with the SatoshiVM team was dumping millions of SAVM tokens on the market shortly after receiving those tokens.
Ape Terminal hits back, denies scam allegations
Adding to the confusion in the SatoshiVM scam allegations, Ape Terminal made a separate announcement. In a thread post on X, the crypto launch platform accused MacnBTC of reaping over $10 million in profits from SAVM token sales in a single day.
The allegations further stated that MacnBTC manipulated the token’s distribution. To back up their argument, the team included links from on-chain data that prove his alleged scams.
Meanwhile, the SatoshiVM team also denounced allegations made against its team. It further promised to do an AMA for the community to clarify the air.
“Dear community, there is currently a lot of misinformation being spread about SatoshiVM and $SAVM from fraudulent sources. The team will open source our SVMZK research paper tomorrow,”
they wrote in a post on X.
Meanwhile, the counter-allegations have left the community confused. Having lost their investments, they do not know who to hold accountable.
On the one hand, crypto influencers shilled SAVM tokens only to dump their holdings on the market. On the other hand, the entire team behind the project is busy pointing fingers at each other.
Meanwhile, on-chain investigator ZachXBT blamed both sides for the controversy.
“Do not take sides. Both Ape Terminal and Mac are guilty of acting dishonest towards their users/followers,”
he wrote.
Market impact of SatoshiVM scam
As the controversy unfolded, the SAVM price saw a sharp decline. Immediately after the allegations spread, it dropped from around $10 to $6 per token within a few hours of MacnBTC’s initial social post on X.
After its short attempt to rebound to $7 did not stick, the token nosedived even further, reaching an all-time low of $3.17.
After making headlines following what seemed to be a successful launch, SAVM had charted an all-time high of $14.88 just days back.
However, with the SatoshiVM scam story not dying down, some speculate it could be one of the biggest scams recently.
