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{"actor":"system:backfill","investigation_id":"0f5f803f-39df-45c4-a38f-e4fa7fc8b024","kind":"publish","page_slug":"trove-markets","published_at":"2026-06-19T17:11:09.746Z","sequence_num":1,"snapshot":{"content_type":"investigation","entity_name":"Trove Markets","sections":[{"content":"Trove Markets presented itself as the first HIP-3 perpetual DEX on Hyperliquid, offering leveraged trading (up to 5x) on typically illiquid asset classes including Pokemon cards, CS:GO skins, real-world assets (RWAs), and prediction market shares. The platform's price oracle was marketed as combining Hyperliquid's Hyperps pricing model with data from more than 25 sources. A public beta launched on November 27, 2025. The project's utility token, TROVE, was described as serving governance, staking, and trading incentive functions, with 10% of revenue allocated to staking rewards and 60% to token burns. The company behind the project was allegedly incorporated as PerpsCollectibles Ltd in the British Virgin Islands, though this has not been independently verified from official registry records. The pseudonymous founder operated under the handle 'Unwise' on social media.","heading":"Project Overview and Background","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"What is Trove? The First HIP-3 Protocol on Hyperliquid - Whales Market","type":"other","url":"https://whales.market/blog/what-is-trove/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets (TROVE) ICO Token Sale Review - CryptoRank","type":"other","url":"https://cryptorank.io/ico/trove-markets"},{"credibility":2,"name":"What happened with Trove Markets? - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/what-happened-with-trove-markets/"}]},{"content":"Trove Markets conducted its ICO from January 8 to 11, 2026, originally targeting a raise of $2.5 million. The sale became oversubscribed, ultimately raising approximately $11.5 million. Five minutes before the stated ICO closing time, the team unexpectedly modified the smart contract to extend the sale deadline, then reversed that decision approximately 14 minutes later. This whiplash created significant confusion and directly caused losses for participants in Polymarket prediction markets tied to the ICO outcome. One Polymarket trader lost approximately $73,000 after placing an $89,000 bet that the extension would occur, only to see the team reverse course. Of the $11.5 million raised, the team refunded approximately $2.4 million to early investors and retained $9.4 million, citing the need to fund the product rebuild. Critics questioned why investors did not receive a full refund given the material change to the project's platform and roadmap.","heading":"ICO Misconduct and Smart Contract Manipulation","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets' $11.5M token sale sparks backlash after last-minute changes - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/385057/trove-markets-token-sale-sparks-backlash"},{"credibility":2,"name":"TROVE token crashes 97% after TGE amid trust fallout - Crypto Briefing","type":"news_article","url":"https://cryptobriefing.com/trove-token-crash-presale-backlash/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets $11.5M ICO Sparks Controversy - MEXC Blog","type":"news_article","url":"https://blog.mexc.com/news/trove-markets-11-5m-ico-sparks-controversy-and-polymarket-bet-costs-trader-73k/"}]},{"content":"On January 18, 2026, hours before the TROVE token was scheduled to go live on Hyperliquid, the team announced an abrupt pivot to the Solana blockchain. The stated reason was that an unnamed liquidity partner had unwound their 500,000 HYPE token position (then worth approximately $12.5 million), which was required to deploy perpetual futures markets under Hyperliquid's HIP-3 infrastructure. Critics noted that the liquidity partner's stake represented approximately $500,000 in actual positions — not $12.5 million — and questioned whether this alone justified abandoning the entire platform architecture. The team committed to rebuilding the perpetual DEX on Solana 'from the ground up' using the retained $9.4 million. Investors who had participated in the ICO specifically based on the Hyperliquid premise received no vote on the pivot and were not offered full refunds.","heading":"Sudden Platform Pivot and Retained ICO Funds","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets announces sudden pivot to Solana - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/386072/trove-markets-announces-sudden-pivot-to-solana-hours-before-token-is-set-to-go-live"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets retains $9.4m ICO funds after platform pivot - Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/trove-markets-retains-ico-funds-after-platform-pivot/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"Trove Markets Shifts to Solana from Hyperliquid, Triggering Investor Backlash - Ainvest","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.ainvest.com/news/trove-markets-shifts-solana-hyperliquid-triggering-investor-backlash-2601/"}]},{"content":"When the TROVE token launched — following the pivot to Solana — it crashed approximately 97% within hours of the token generation event (TGE). The fully diluted valuation fell from roughly $20 million pre-launch to under $500,000, with some reports indicating as low as $330,000, according to GeckoTerminal data. Documented investor losses include one participant who invested $20,000 and received only $600 in total compensation, and another who invested $10,000 and received $3,000 at the time of the partial refund plus approximately $285 in token value post-crash. On-chain analysis identified that one entity had accumulated approximately 12% of the total TROVE supply. Approximately 80 newly created wallets with identical funding patterns — routed through the ChangeHero exchange — and no prior on-chain activity were identified around the token launch, raising concerns about coordinated wallet activity, though a direct link to the Trove team was not established by investigators.","heading":"Token Launch Collapse","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Investors in crypto exchange for Pokemon cards furious as they lose 98% - DL News","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.dlnews.com/articles/defi/investors-in-trove-markets-furious-as-token-crashes/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"TROVE token crashes 97% after TGE amid trust fallout - Crypto Briefing","type":"news_article","url":"https://cryptobriefing.com/trove-token-crash-presale-backlash/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove's New Token Craters 95%, Sparking Investor Revolt - TradingView/NewsBTC","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.tradingview.com/news/newsbtc:460570fc0094b:0-trove-s-new-token-craters-95-sparking-investor-revolt/"}]},{"content":"Trove Markets faced additional fraud allegations after on-chain data showed wallet 0xebe07e526c4dc5f0005801bbd7d9850c424cf719 — linked to the project — sold approximately 194,273 HYPE tokens (roughly $10 million) within a 24-hour period. These tokens had originally been acquired for staking purposes to operate the DEX on Hyperliquid. The pseudonymous founder 'Unwise' publicly denied controlling the wallet and allegedly requested its shutdown; however, sales from the wallet allegedly resumed within minutes of that denial. This incident fueled speculation about either insider fraud or a compromised wallet, and neither explanation was definitively established at the time of reporting. In response to the controversy, the Hyperliquid Foundation donated 10,000 HYPE tokens to blockchain investigator ZachXBT to fund further investigation.","heading":"Alleged $10 Million HYPE Token Dump","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets Faces Allegations Over $10 Million HYPE Dump - BeInCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://beincrypto.com/trove-markets-hype-token-dump-fraud-investigation/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets Accused of $10 Million HYPE Token Dump - Yahoo Finance","type":"news_article","url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trove-markets-accused-10-million-211116846.html"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets Faces Allegations Over $10 Million HYPE Dump - MEXC","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.mexc.com/en-GB/news/504700"}]},{"content":"On January 17, 2026, blockchain investigator ZachXBT publicly posted on-chain analysis showing that Trove's developers had transferred approximately $45,000 — sourced from the angel investment round raised on January 11 — to the deposit address of a cryptocurrency casino. ZachXBT asked the team to explain the transaction publicly. The Trove team responded by suggesting that the transfers may have been made by crypto personality '@_TJRTrades,' known for gambling content. No definitive attribution was established, and the team did not provide on-chain evidence supporting their characterization. This incident represented one of several documented misuses of investor funds alleged by external investigators.","heading":"Casino Deposits and Misuse of Investor Funds","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"What happened with Trove Markets? - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/what-happened-with-trove-markets/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Investors call for class action suit against Trove amid rug pull allegations - MEXC","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.mexc.co/en-PH/news/515118"}]},{"content":"Investigators and community members documented that Trove Markets made undisclosed payments to crypto influencers for promotional content. One documented case involved crypto influencer 'Wale Moca,' who allegedly received an $8,000 payment without disclosing the arrangement to their audience. Additional influencers were allegedly offered discounted participation in the token sale in exchange for promotion, a practice that can constitute undisclosed material compensation under securities laws in many jurisdictions. Screenshots allegedly showed founder 'Unwise' communicating with crypto influencer 'CBB' and downplaying investor refund expectations.","heading":"Undisclosed Influencer Payments and Marketing Misconduct","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"What happened with Trove Markets? - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/what-happened-with-trove-markets/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Investors in crypto exchange for Pokemon cards furious - DL News","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.dlnews.com/articles/defi/investors-in-trove-markets-furious-as-token-crashes/"}]},{"content":"Crypto investigator 'Eyeonchains' published an analysis alleging that the pseudonymous founder 'Unwise' was a frontman puppet and that the real actor behind Trove Markets is Jin Qing Qing, described as a Shanghai-based individual with a history of operating crypto scam sites. Eyeonchains traced ICO funds (approximately $1.8 million in recent movements) across multiple exchanges including Binance, Bybit, Roobot, Gate, Coinsquare, and Lbank. A Gate deposit address was identified as both an early buyer of the TAKER token and as having received approximately $80,000 from the PoP Planet team — a separate project also allegedly linked to Jin Qing Qing. Eyeonchains reported that 24 domains are registered under Jin's name, including casino operations and multiple crypto project sites, characterizing Jin as a 'professional max extractor' who deliberately obscures personal identity. Eyeonchains stated the information was passed to authorities. These allegations are from a single pseudonymous investigator and have not been corroborated by law enforcement or court filings as of the time of this report. Separately, Foresight Ventures — a legitimate VC firm — publicly denied any affiliation, partnership, or investment in Trove Markets, countering earlier claims that the project had a $4 million investment from the firm.","heading":"Alleged Real Perpetrator: Jin Qing Qing","severity":"critical","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets perpetrator is Chinese crypto scammer, report - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/trove-markets-perpetrator-is-chinese-crypto-scammer-report/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Project Faces Alleged Insider Trading and Exit Scam - KuCoin","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.kucoin.com/news/flash/trove-project-faces-alleged-insider-trading-and-exit-scam-amid-upcoming-token-launch"},{"credibility":3,"name":"Foresight Ventures denial on X","type":"social_media","url":"https://x.com/ForesightVen/status/2016181384776134918/photo/1"}]},{"content":"Legal firm Burwick Law publicly offered Trove Markets victims the opportunity to discuss potential compensation, consistent with the firm's pattern of pursuing crypto consumer protection cases. No formal filed lawsuit or regulatory action by the SEC, CFTC, DOJ, or other authority against Trove Markets or its principals had been publicly confirmed as of the time of this report. Community members across social media called for a class-action lawsuit, characterizing the project as a 'rug pull,' 'an 8-figure scam,' and 'blatant fraud.' The project's retention of $9.4 million after a material change to the product roadmap — without investor consent — raises potential legal exposure under securities and consumer protection frameworks in multiple jurisdictions. Unregistered token sales that qualify as securities offerings are subject to enforcement actions by the SEC in the United States.","heading":"Legal Action and Regulatory Exposure","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"All of Burwick Law's crypto investigations and lawsuits - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/all-of-burwick-laws-crypto-investigations-and-lawsuits/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Burwick Law Active Cases","type":"official","url":"https://www.burwick.law/active-cases"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Investors call for class action against Trove - MEXC","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.mexc.co/en-PH/news/515118"}]},{"content":"The project was founded and operated primarily by the pseudonymous account 'Unwise.' The founder's real identity was allegedly identified through a photograph taken at a Token2049 side event, but no verified real-world identity for 'Unwise' was publicly confirmed. The legal entity allegedly behind the project, PerpsCollectibles Ltd, was reportedly registered in the British Virgin Islands — a jurisdiction frequently used for offshore corporate opacity. No public documentation of the company's registration, directors, or registered agents was made available to investors. The lack of doxxed founders is common in DeFi but represents elevated risk in the context of all other factors present in this case.","heading":"Team Transparency and Anonymity","severity":"high","sources":[{"credibility":2,"name":"What happened with Trove Markets? - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/what-happened-with-trove-markets/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets fallout deepens after token crashes post-launch - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/386221/trove-markets-fallout-deepens-after-token-crashes-post-launch"}]}],"sources_used":[{"credibility":2,"name":"What happened with Trove Markets? - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/what-happened-with-trove-markets/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets perpetrator is Chinese crypto scammer, report - Protos","type":"news_article","url":"https://protos.com/trove-markets-perpetrator-is-chinese-crypto-scammer-report/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Investors in crypto exchange for Pokemon cards furious as they lose 98% - DL News","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.dlnews.com/articles/defi/investors-in-trove-markets-furious-as-token-crashes/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"TROVE token crashes 97% after TGE amid trust fallout - Crypto Briefing","type":"news_article","url":"https://cryptobriefing.com/trove-token-crash-presale-backlash/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets' $11.5M token sale sparks backlash after last-minute changes - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/385057/trove-markets-token-sale-sparks-backlash"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets announces sudden pivot to Solana - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/386072/trove-markets-announces-sudden-pivot-to-solana-hours-before-token-is-set-to-go-live"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets fallout deepens after token crashes post-launch - The Block","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/386221/trove-markets-fallout-deepens-after-token-crashes-post-launch"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets retains $9.4m ICO funds after platform pivot - Crypto.news","type":"news_article","url":"https://crypto.news/trove-markets-retains-ico-funds-after-platform-pivot/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets Faces Allegations Over $10 Million HYPE Dump - BeInCrypto","type":"news_article","url":"https://beincrypto.com/trove-markets-hype-token-dump-fraud-investigation/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets Accused of $10 Million HYPE Token Dump - Yahoo Finance","type":"news_article","url":"https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trove-markets-accused-10-million-211116846.html"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Project Faces Alleged Insider Trading and Exit Scam - KuCoin","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.kucoin.com/news/flash/trove-project-faces-alleged-insider-trading-and-exit-scam-amid-upcoming-token-launch"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets $11.5M ICO Sparks Controversy - MEXC Blog","type":"news_article","url":"https://blog.mexc.com/news/trove-markets-11-5m-ico-sparks-controversy-and-polymarket-bet-costs-trader-73k/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Investors call for class action against Trove - MEXC","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.mexc.co/en-PH/news/515118"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets (TROVE) ICO - CryptoRank","type":"other","url":"https://cryptorank.io/ico/trove-markets"},{"credibility":3,"name":"Trove Markets & TROVE Token Analysis - CoinLaunch","type":"other","url":"https://coinlaunch.space/projects/trove-markets/"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Burwick Law Active Cases","type":"official","url":"https://www.burwick.law/active-cases"},{"credibility":3,"name":"Foresight Ventures denial - X (Twitter)","type":"social_media","url":"https://x.com/ForesightVen/status/2016181384776134918/photo/1"},{"credibility":3,"name":"What is Trove? - Whales Market Blog","type":"other","url":"https://whales.market/blog/what-is-trove/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"Trove Token Crash After Solana Launch - CoinGabbar","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.coingabbar.com/en/crypto-currency-news/trove-token-crash-solana-rug-pull"},{"credibility":2,"name":"Trove Markets Faces Backlash About Moving Launch to Solana - BanklessTimes","type":"news_article","url":"https://www.banklesstimes.com/articles/2026/01/19/trove-markets-faces-backlash-about-moving-launch-to-solana/"}],"summary":"Trove Markets was a short-lived DeFi project that raised approximately $11.5 million through an ICO in January 2026 to build a perpetual futures exchange for collectibles (Pokemon cards, CS:GO skins) on Hyperliquid. Days before its token launch, the team pivoted to Solana without investor consent, retained $9.4 million of ICO funds, and the TROVE token crashed 97% within hours of its TGE. Multiple fraud allegations followed, including an alleged $10 million HYPE token dump from a project-linked wallet, undisclosed influencer payments, siphoning of $45,000 to a crypto casino, and on-chain evidence of wallet concentration; crypto investigator Eyeonchains alleges the real actor behind the project is Shanghai-based serial scammer Jin Qing Qing.","timeline":[{"date":"2025-11-27","event":"Trove Markets public beta launched, allowing users to take long or short positions on collectibles on Hyperliquid.","source":"Whales Market blog","source_url":"https://whales.market/blog/what-is-trove/"},{"date":"2026-01-08","event":"ICO opens with a stated target raise of $2.5 million.","source":"Crypto Briefing","source_url":"https://cryptobriefing.com/trove-token-crash-presale-backlash/"},{"date":"2026-01-11","event":"ICO closes having raised approximately $11.5 million, oversubscribed more than 4x. Five minutes before closing, team modifies smart contract to extend the deadline, then reverses 14 minutes later, causing Polymarket losses of approximately $73,000 for one trader.","source":"The Block","source_url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/385057/trove-markets-token-sale-sparks-backlash"},{"date":"2026-01-11","event":"Angel round funds of approximately $45,000 transferred to a cryptocurrency casino deposit address, documented by ZachXBT on-chain.","source":"Protos","source_url":"https://protos.com/what-happened-with-trove-markets/"},{"date":"2026-01-17","event":"ZachXBT publicly posts on-chain analysis of the $45,000 casino transfer, asking the team to explain.","source":"MEXC News","source_url":"https://www.mexc.co/en-PH/news/515118"},{"date":"2026-01-18","event":"Hours before scheduled token launch, team announces abrupt pivot from Hyperliquid to Solana, citing unnamed liquidity partner unwinding their HYPE position.","source":"The Block","source_url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/386072/trove-markets-announces-sudden-pivot-to-solana-hours-before-token-is-set-to-go-live"},{"date":"2026-01-19","event":"On-chain data shows wallet 0xebe07e526c4dc5f0005801bbd7d9850c424cf719 linked to the project dumps approximately 194,273 HYPE tokens worth roughly $10 million within 24 hours. Founder 'Unwise' denies controlling the wallet; sales resume minutes after the denial.","source":"BeInCrypto","source_url":"https://beincrypto.com/trove-markets-hype-token-dump-fraud-investigation/"},{"date":"2026-01-20","event":"TROVE token launches on Solana and crashes approximately 97% within hours, from a fully diluted valuation of roughly $20 million to under $500,000.","source":"DL News","source_url":"https://www.dlnews.com/articles/defi/investors-in-trove-markets-furious-as-token-crashes/"},{"date":"2026-01-20","event":"Team announces it is refunding $2.4 million and retaining $9.4 million of ICO funds to rebuild the DEX on Solana. Community members call for class-action lawsuit.","source":"Crypto.news","source_url":"https://crypto.news/trove-markets-retains-ico-funds-after-platform-pivot/"},{"date":"2026-01-21","event":"Burwick Law publicly offers potential victims the opportunity to discuss compensation.","source":"Protos","source_url":"https://protos.com/what-happened-with-trove-markets/"},{"date":"2026-01-21","event":"Crypto investigator Eyeonchains publishes report alleging Jin Qing Qing of Shanghai as the real actor behind Trove Markets, claiming 24 domains registered under the name and links to TAKER token and PoP Planet projects. Foresight Ventures publicly denies any affiliation with Trove Markets.","source":"Protos","source_url":"https://protos.com/trove-markets-perpetrator-is-chinese-crypto-scammer-report/"},{"date":"2026-01-21","event":"Hyperliquid Foundation donates 10,000 HYPE to ZachXBT to fund further investigation of the HYPE token dump.","source":"BeInCrypto","source_url":"https://beincrypto.com/trove-markets-hype-token-dump-fraud-investigation/"}]},"v":1}