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A crypto presale that raised $11 million has collapsed into allegations of fraud after Trove Markets suddenly switched blockchains days before launch, locked investors into a 95% token crash, and allegedly routed $45,000 in investor funds to a casino, according to blockchain investigators.
The controversy unfolded this week after the project abandoned its original launch plans, leaving contributors locked into losses and sparking backlash across the Hyperliquid and Solana communities.
At the center of the Trove rug pull allegations is the project’s last-minute decision to abandon HyperEVM and launch its token on Solana instead. Trove Markets had initially marketed itself as a collectibles-perpetual decentralized exchange built around the Hyperliquid ecosystem.
During its presale, the team set out to raise $2.5 million but ultimately collected more than $11 million from contributors who expected the token to debut on Hyperliquid.
Just one week after the presale ended, Trove announced it would migrate to Solana. The move blindsided investors, many of whom said they had no warning or opportunity to exit.
Critics argue the decision effectively trapped funds and laid the groundwork for what they now call a Trove rug pull, accusing developers of engineering exit liquidity at the expense of early supporters.
Community members also allege that refunds promised to Hyperliquid contributors were delayed while preparations for the Solana launch moved forward. According to on-chain data reviewed by traders, wallets associated with the project began offloading Hyperliquid-related tokens shortly before the Solana deployment.
Market data following the launch intensified fears of a Trove rug pull. When the TROVE token went live on Solana, its fully diluted valuation reportedly collapsed from roughly $20 million to about $1 million within minutes. Traders tracking the rollout said the blockchain switch prevented concerned investors from withdrawing or mitigating losses.
One investor described the impact in stark terms: “My $20,000 investment with 9+ mil committed should have resulted in $14k USDC back and $6k in $TROVE. Due to the token GIGA nuking, they gave me in total….$600 back,” — Investor, quoted in community discussions.
The complaint quickly circulated across social media, amplifying calls for legal action.
Hyperliquid community members further accused Trove of dumping large holdings of HYPE tokens ahead of the Solana launch.
Blockchain data from Hyperscan showed wallets linked to the project selling off assets on Monday, the same day Trove confirmed its migration. These actions, critics say, align with patterns commonly associated with a Trove rug pull.
Scrutiny intensified as blockchain investigator ZachXBT raised questions about how investor funds were handled, adding another layer to the Trove rug pull narrative.
On social media, ZachXBT publicly challenged the project over transactions allegedly linking Trove wallets to casino deposit addresses.
“Want to explain to the community why your team bridged $45K from the Trove Angel Round raise on Jan 11 and deposited it directly into a casino deposit address?” ZachXBT, Blockchain Investigator.
He accompanied the post with transaction hashes detailing the source and destination wallets.
Additional allegations emerged around undisclosed influencer promotions. Community accounts claimed some crypto influencers were paid to promote the ICO without clearly labeling the content as advertising According to posts citing ZachXBT’s findings, certain influencers allegedly received thousands of dollars in payments or preferential token pricing.
The Hyperliquid News account criticized the practice, saying:
“What’s really messed up is that this KOL didn’t even add an ad tag or warn users. Taking ads isn’t wrong, but if you don’t disclose it, it’s easy to overhype and cause the community to lose money. Especially investing in projects like TROVE,” — Hyperliquid News, X post.
Such claims further reinforced perceptions of a coordinated Trove rug pull among disgruntled investors.
As backlash mounted, some influencers associated with the launch attempted to distance themselves from the project. Meteversejoji, one of the figures identified in screenshots shared by community members, published a statement describing his involvement and denying prior knowledge of the Solana switch.
“I honestly didn’t DD this enough… I’m sorry if I made you buy this, at least know I got scammed too,” Meteversejoji, Crypto Influencer.
He said his team had invested months earlier and only learned of the migration shortly before launch, when much of the raised capital had already been spent.
Despite these explanations, investor anger has not subsided. Contributors continue to organize around potential legal action, arguing that the sequence of events, from the surprise migration to the token crash and disputed fund transfers, fits the pattern of a Trove rug pull.
For many, the episode has become a cautionary tale about transparency, influencer marketing, and trust in early-stage crypto projects.
