Audit log

Every state-changing event for Plasma (XPL): moderation decisions on community submissions, plus corrections and updates from the news pipeline. URL-based decisions are designed to carry three independent witnesses — the original source, an Internet Archive snapshot, and a Solana memo signed by our publicly-disclosed publisher key. Archive coverage is still being backfilled, so each decision below reports its own snapshot status rather than assuming one exists.

1. #1publishby system:backfill

   2026-09-23 04:04:21Z
   Score: ? → ? (no score change)
   anchoranchored

   chain

   ●mainnet-betaslot 449,589,384

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   SVxXxYLP94Nm…D36JvRMbcopyexplorer ↗

   hash

   7RB7SQVKKFnR…4bK4pJxwcopysha256 → base58

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   {"actor":"system:backfill","investigation_id":"27ce12e3-0506-455c-a905-b45390291ee7","kind":"publish","page_slug":"plasma","published_at":"2026-09-23T04:04:21.819Z","sequence_num":1,"snapshot":{"content_type":"investigation","entity_name":"Plasma (XPL)","sections":[{"content":"Plasma was founded by Paul Faecks (co-founder of Alloy and a former Deribit-linked derivatives professional) alongside investor Christian Angermayer, with the project publicly launched in 2024. The team stated an intent to work closely with Tether to make Plasma a key distribution channel for USDT. Early financial backers included Bitfinex, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, Peter Thiel's Founders Fund, Framework Ventures, and crypto traders Cobie and Zaheer Ebtikar. Plasma raised approximately $20-24 million in a Seed/Series A round co-led by Framework Ventures and Bitfinex/USDT0 in February 2025, part of a total raised exceeding $75 million (some sources cite over $400 million including the later public token sale). The close Tether/Bitfinex relationship is a defining feature of the project's positioning but also a concentration risk, since Plasma's core value proposition (fee-free USDT transfers) depends heavily on continued Tether cooperation.","heading":"Origins, Team, and Backers","severity":"low","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Crypto Project Plasma Raises $20M to Develop Bitcoin-Based Network for Stablecoins - CoinDesk","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.coindesk.com/business/2025/02/13/plasma-raises-usd20m-to-develop-bitcoin-based-network-for-stablecoins"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Stablecoin company Plasma completes $24 million financing, led by Framework Ventures - ChainCatcher","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.chaincatcher.com/en/article/2167457"},{"credibility":2,"name":"With Peter Thiel, Paolo Ardoino Backing: Plasma to Launch Blockchain for Tether on Bitcoin Network","type":"news_article","url":"https://cryptonews.com.au/news/with-peter-thiel-paolo-ardoino-backing-plasma-to-launch-blockchain-for-tether-on-bitcoin-network-126330/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Notable Crypto Personalities - Paul Faecks - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/profile/326051/paul-faecks"},{"credibility":3,"name":"Plasma (XPL): Stablecoin layer on Bitcoin backed by Tether and Peter Thiel - Bybit Learn","type":"other","url":"https://www.bybit.com/en/learn/stablecoin/what-is-plasma-xpl"}]},{"content":"Plasma conducted a public token sale that was oversubscribed roughly 7x above a stated $50 million target, with sources reporting the raise reached the hundreds of millions (figures cited range from $373 million to $500 million depending on the source), with tokens priced at $0.05. Mainnet beta and the XPL token launched simultaneously on September 25, 2025, with the project touting over $2 billion in stablecoin liquidity deployed across more than 100 DeFi partners on day one, including Aave, Ethena, Fluid, and Euler. XPL's fully diluted valuation was reported near $10 billion at launch. An allocation of 25 million XPL (about 9,304 tokens per participant, roughly $8,390 at debut pricing) was distributed equally to ICO pre-deposit participants regardless of deposit size.","heading":"Token Sale and Mainnet Launch","severity":"low","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Bitfinex-backed Plasma blockchain to launch mainnet and XPL token next week - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/371228/bitfinex-plasma-blockchain-mainnet-launch"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma Mainnet Beta Goes Live With XPL Token FDV Reaching $10B at Launch - The Defiant","type":"news_article","url":"https://thedefiant.io/news/blockchains/plasma-mainnet-beta-xpl-token-launch"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Stablecoin L1 Plasma Unveils Launch Date for Mainnet Beta, TGE - The Defiant","type":"news_article","url":"https://thedefiant.io/news/blockchains/plasma-stablecoin-chain-mainnet-beta-tge-launch-date"}]},{"content":"According to Plasma's own tokenomics documentation, 40% of total XPL supply (4 billion tokens) is allocated to ecosystem growth, with 8% unlocked at mainnet launch and the remaining 32% released linearly over roughly three years, intended for partnerships, grants, and liquidity incentives. XPL held by non-US purchasers was fully unlocked at mainnet beta launch on September 25, 2025, while XPL held by US purchasers is subject to a 12-month lockup unlocking around July 28, 2026. Founder Paul Faecks stated publicly that no team members had sold XPL and that all investor and team token allocations are locked for three years with a one-year cliff. Independent on-chain analysis reported that roughly 600 million of the ~800 million XPL tokens unlocked at launch (8% of total supply) were subsequently sent to exchanges from project-controlled wallets, which analysts identified as a major source of early sell pressure — a claim that sits in tension with the founder's public reassurances about token lockups, though the two claims are not necessarily contradictory since ecosystem/ICO-allocation tokens are distinct from team/investor tokens.","heading":"Token Distribution, Unlocks, and Lockups","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":1,"name":"Tokenomics - Plasma Docs","type":"official","url":"https://www.plasma.org/docs/get-started/xpl/tokenomics"},{"credibility":2,"name":"XPL Token Price Jumps 15% as Founder Addresses Controversy - BeInCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://beincrypto.com/plasma-xpl-token-price-surge/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma - How XPL's rally ended in 'embarrassing' 46% crash - AMBCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://ambcrypto.com/plasma-how-xpls-rally-ended-in-embarrassing-46-crash/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma Token Unlocks & Vesting Schedule - DefiLlama","type":"on_chain","url":"https://defillama.com/unlocks/plasma"}]},{"content":"XPL surged as much as 1,500% shortly after launch, from roughly $0.10 to a peak near $1.67-$1.68 around September 27, 2025, partly driven by presale investors who saw approximately 19x returns. XPL then declined sharply, falling over 80% by late October 2025 and reportedly 85-90% from its peak by late November 2025, trading in the $0.18-$0.20 range. Contributing factors cited by analysts and journalists include large token unlocks feeding sell pressure, thin actual network usage (one report measured the chain processing just 3.6 transactions per second versus a touted capacity of roughly 1,000 TPS), and broad profit-taking. CoinDesk reported that Plasma's leadership repeatedly declined interview requests and ultimately stated it was 'not in a position to comment' when asked about the crash, which the outlet characterized as a communications vacuum during a period of investor scrutiny.","heading":"Price Performance and Token Crash","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":1,"name":"XPL's 90% Crash Exposes Plasma's Growing Pains — and a Communication Problem - CoinDesk","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/11/26/a-new-crypto-project-vowed-to-transform-stablecoins-then-its-token-crashed-90"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma's XPL Token Crashes 80% as Hype Fades Amid Woeful Debut - Yahoo Finance","type":"news_article","url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/plasma-xpl-token-crashes-80-111909476.html"},{"credibility":2,"name":"XPL Crash Explained: FUD and Profit-Taking Trigger 46% Plunge - Yahoo Finance","type":"news_article","url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/xpl-crash-explained-fud-profit-084014332.html"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma XPL Crypto Lost 85% Of Value in 6 Weeks: Here's Why - 99Bitcoins","type":"news_article","url":"https://99bitcoins.com/news/altcoins/plasma-xpl-crypto-loses-85-of-its-value-in-six-weeks-what-happened/"}]},{"content":"Following the price decline, claims circulated that Plasma was developed by the same team behind Blast, a Layer 2 project that drew prior controversy over its token launch and locked-liquidity model. Some crypto analysts described this claim as unsubstantiated or organized FUD intended to amplify selling pressure, rather than an established fact. AVOID.NET could not independently verify the underlying claim of shared team membership between Plasma and Blast through Tier 1 or Tier 2 sourcing; it is treated here as an alleged and disputed rumor, not a confirmed connection. Founder Paul Faecks publicly responded to the broader wave of controversy following the crash, reiterating that no team members had sold tokens and that team/investor allocations remained locked.","heading":"'Blast' Association Rumor and Founder Response","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"XPL Crash Explained: FUD and Profit-Taking Trigger 46% Plunge - Yahoo Finance","type":"news_article","url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/xpl-crash-explained-fud-profit-084014332.html"},{"credibility":2,"name":"XPL Token Price Jumps 15% as Founder Addresses Controversy - BeInCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://beincrypto.com/plasma-xpl-token-price-surge/"}]},{"content":"Plasma's marketing emphasized over $2 billion in day-one stablecoin liquidity and reports of TVL reaching as high as $5.6-6 billion within its first week, at one point placing it among the largest stablecoin-supply chains by DeFiLlama's metrics. However, subsequent reporting indicated this figure was substantially inflated by incentive-chasing capital: Plasma's stablecoin supply fell from a peak above $6 billion to less than $2 billion within about two months of launch, and by mid-August 2026 DeFiLlama showed roughly $710 million in stablecoins and about $630 million in DeFi TVL on the chain. Analysts characterized much of the initial capital as 'mercenary' — deployed to farm XPL liquidity-mining rewards rather than to transact — meaning it exited once incentive yields declined, undermining the durability of Plasma's headline liquidity claims. Some individual integrations, such as the Aave deployment on Plasma, were reported to show comparatively efficient incentive spend (approximately $160 of TVL generated per $1 of incentives over an eight-week window), suggesting uneven results across the ecosystem rather than uniform failure.","heading":"Stablecoin TVL and Liquidity: Claims vs. Reality","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma - DeFi TVL, Fees, & Revenue - DefiLlama","type":"on_chain","url":"https://defillama.com/chain/plasma"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma Bridged Assets & Cross-Chain TVL - DefiLlama","type":"on_chain","url":"https://defillama.com/bridged/plasma"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Bitfinex-Backed Stablecoin Chain Plasma Just Launched. Here's the Bull Case - Unchained","type":"news_article","url":"https://unchainedcrypto.com/bitfinex-backed-stablecoin-chain-plasma-just-launched-heres-the-bull-case/"}]}],"sources_used":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Crypto Project Plasma Raises $20M to Develop Bitcoin-Based Network for Stablecoins - CoinDesk","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.coindesk.com/business/2025/02/13/plasma-raises-usd20m-to-develop-bitcoin-based-network-for-stablecoins"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Stablecoin company Plasma completes $24 million financing, led by Framework Ventures - ChainCatcher","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.chaincatcher.com/en/article/2167457"},{"credibility":2,"name":"With Peter Thiel, Paolo Ardoino Backing: Plasma to Launch Blockchain for Tether on Bitcoin Network - Cryptonews.com.au","type":"news_article","url":"https://cryptonews.com.au/news/with-peter-thiel-paolo-ardoino-backing-plasma-to-launch-blockchain-for-tether-on-bitcoin-network-126330/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Notable Crypto Personalities - Paul Faecks - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/profile/326051/paul-faecks"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Bitfinex-backed Plasma blockchain to launch mainnet and XPL token next week - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/371228/bitfinex-plasma-blockchain-mainnet-launch"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma Mainnet Beta Goes Live With XPL Token FDV Reaching $10B at Launch - The Defiant","type":"news_article","url":"https://thedefiant.io/news/blockchains/plasma-mainnet-beta-xpl-token-launch"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Stablecoin L1 Plasma Unveils Launch Date for Mainnet Beta, TGE - The Defiant","type":"news_article","url":"https://thedefiant.io/news/blockchains/plasma-stablecoin-chain-mainnet-beta-tge-launch-date"},{"credibility":1,"name":"Tokenomics - Plasma Docs","type":"official","url":"https://www.plasma.org/docs/get-started/xpl/tokenomics"},{"credibility":2,"name":"XPL Token Price Jumps 15% as Founder Addresses Controversy - BeInCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://beincrypto.com/plasma-xpl-token-price-surge/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma - How XPL's rally ended in 'embarrassing' 46% crash - AMBCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://ambcrypto.com/plasma-how-xpls-rally-ended-in-embarrassing-46-crash/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma Token Unlocks & Vesting Schedule - DefiLlama","type":"on_chain","url":"https://defillama.com/unlocks/plasma"},{"credibility":1,"name":"XPL's 90% Crash Exposes Plasma's Growing Pains — and a Communication Problem - CoinDesk","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/11/26/a-new-crypto-project-vowed-to-transform-stablecoins-then-its-token-crashed-90"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma's XPL Token Crashes 80% as Hype Fades Amid Woeful Debut - Yahoo Finance","type":"news_article","url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/plasma-xpl-token-crashes-80-111909476.html"},{"credibility":2,"name":"XPL Crash Explained: FUD and Profit-Taking Trigger 46% Plunge - Yahoo Finance","type":"news_article","url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/xpl-crash-explained-fud-profit-084014332.html"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma XPL Crypto Lost 85% Of Value in 6 Weeks: Here's Why - 99Bitcoins","type":"news_article","url":"https://99bitcoins.com/news/altcoins/plasma-xpl-crypto-loses-85-of-its-value-in-six-weeks-what-happened/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma - DeFi TVL, Fees, & Revenue - DefiLlama","type":"on_chain","url":"https://defillama.com/chain/plasma"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Plasma Bridged Assets & Cross-Chain TVL - DefiLlama","type":"on_chain","url":"https://defillama.com/bridged/plasma"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Bitfinex-Backed Stablecoin Chain Plasma Just Launched. Here's the Bull Case - Unchained","type":"news_article","url":"https://unchainedcrypto.com/bitfinex-backed-stablecoin-chain-plasma-just-launched-heres-the-bull-case/"}],"summary":"Plasma is a stablecoin-focused Layer 1 blockchain, EVM-compatible and anchored to Bitcoin, built around zero-fee USDT transfers and backed by Bitfinex/Tether figures and Peter Thiel's Founders Fund. It launched mainnet beta and its XPL token on September 25, 2025 with over $2 billion in day-one stablecoin liquidity, but XPL has since fallen roughly 85-90% from its post-launch peak amid thin on-chain usage, large token unlocks, and allegations that much of its reported liquidity was incentive-driven \"mercenary capital\" rather than organic demand.","timeline":[{"date":"2024","event":"Plasma founded by Paul Faecks and Christian Angermayer as a stablecoin-focused Layer 1 blockchain project.","source":"The Block / CoinDesk reporting","source_url":"https://www.theblock.co/profile/326051/paul-faecks"},{"date":"2025-02-13","event":"Plasma raises approximately $20-24 million in a Seed/Series A round co-led by Framework Ventures and Bitfinex/USDT0.","source":"CoinDesk","source_url":"https://www.coindesk.com/business/2025/02/13/plasma-raises-usd20m-to-develop-bitcoin-based-network-for-stablecoins"},{"date":"2025-09-25","event":"Plasma mainnet beta and XPL token launch simultaneously, with over $2 billion in stablecoin liquidity deployed across 100+ DeFi protocols on day one; FDV reaches roughly $10 billion.","source":"The Defiant / The Block","source_url":"https://thedefiant.io/news/blockchains/plasma-mainnet-beta-xpl-token-launch"},{"date":"2025-09-27","event":"XPL price peaks near $1.67-$1.68 following a rally of roughly 1,500% from its debut price.","source":"Yahoo Finance / AMBCrypto","source_url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/xpl-crash-explained-fud-profit-084014332.html"},{"date":"2025-10","event":"XPL falls over 80% from its September peak amid large token unlocks and weak on-chain usage.","source":"Yahoo Finance","source_url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/plasma-xpl-token-crashes-80-111909476.html"},{"date":"2025-11-26","event":"CoinDesk reports XPL down roughly 88-90% from peak, network usage far below advertised throughput (3.6 TPS vs. ~1,000 TPS claimed), and Plasma leadership declining interview requests.","source":"CoinDesk","source_url":"https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/11/26/a-new-crypto-project-vowed-to-transform-stablecoins-then-its-token-crashed-90"},{"date":"2026-07-28","event":"Scheduled unlock date for XPL held by US token-sale participants, subject to a 12-month lockup from launch.","source":"Plasma Docs / exchange explainer","source_url":"https://www.plasma.org/docs/get-started/xpl/tokenomics"},{"date":"2026-08 (mid)","event":"DeFiLlama shows Plasma stablecoin supply down to roughly $710 million and DeFi TVL near $630 million, down sharply from a reported peak above $6 billion shortly after launch.","source":"DeFiLlama","source_url":"https://defillama.com/chain/plasma"}]},"v":1}

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