On July 12, on-chain investigator ZachXBT posted on social media, bringing to light a group of related addresses suspected to have been initially funded by the LAB team. He pointed out through on-chain data that within the last approximately 48 hours, this address deposited 18.4 million LAB into Aster and continued selling on the DEX, amounting to about 18.3 million USD; almost at the same time, according to AiCoin data, the price of LAB tokens dropped from approximately 1.2 USD to about 0.55 USD, a cumulative decline of about 54%, erasing the profits of many retail investors in a short period. Adding to market unease, according to ZachXBT's disclosure, this address still holds about 81.5 million LAB, far exceeding the amount that has been sold off, while the LAB team has yet to respond publicly on the matter. Accompanying this sharp decline, the community quickly initiated debates around "Does this constitute market manipulation?" and "Is the project party abusing team tokens?” A crisis directly targeting the trust foundation of the LAB project is fermenting on-chain.

48 Hours of Dumping: 18.4 Million LAB

According to on-chain tracking released by ZachXBT, this associated address, alleged to have been "initially funded by the LAB team," suddenly became exceptionally active over the past approximately 48 hours: transferring LAB from its own address to Aster in multiple transactions, with a total deposit of 18.4 million LAB. Subsequent transaction records indicate that this batch of tokens did not stay on the platform, but instead was continuously sold through Aster on the DEX, split into multiple orders, gradually converted into other assets. At market prices at the time, about 18.3 million USD worth of LAB was thrown into the public market, which is considered a "heavy dump" in any small to mid-cap project.

The timing of the sell-off coincided almost exactly with the price trend: within the same window, LAB dropped from about 1.2 USD to approximately 0.55 USD, losing about 54% in just two days, while the market saw an address linked to the project party dumping tens of millions of tokens onto buyers on the DEX. Large-scale selling from a project-related address is typically interpreted as a strong bearish signal, easily triggering panic and follow-up selling, which is why the community instinctively linked the clearing of these 18.4 million LAB with the sharp price drop. However, it is important to emphasize that public materials currently only clearly present the "depositing into Aster and selling on DEX" on-chain actions, while the subsequent flow of funds, whether they will be withdrawn further or the impact on broader positions lacks verifiable data. Within the existing evidence, the concentrated sell-off of these 18.4 million LAB can only be seen as a clearly visible yet not fully revealed on-chain event.

ZachXBT Tracking Early Investment Related Addresses

Before this sell-off event was noted, the concentrated sale of 18.4 million LAB was more of a cold data point on-chain. What truly ignited market sentiment was ZachXBT's intervention—this investigator, who has repeatedly exposed project fraud and manipulation, has built a long-standing reputation in the industry, making his every public accusation seen as a "warning signal," often amplifying panic and anger rapidly. For many holders, once ZachXBT speaks, the narrative shifts from "unknown large holder selling" to an immediate "potential involvement of the project party" trust crisis.

The core of the controversy lies not in the act of selling itself, but in ZachXBT's characterization of the involved address—as "an address associated with early funding from the LAB team." This statement links the on-chain address with the team's initial capital, which in the court of public opinion is almost tantamount to suggesting that the project party may have directly or indirectly participated in this round of dumping, thereby pushing the focus of questions onto the role and motives of the LAB team. However, public materials have not provided the real identity of the address, nor disclosed specific funding amounts and timelines, and apart from ZachXBT, no other independent institution has verified this on-chain analysis. Before more verifiable evidence emerges, whether this key address is merely an early technical funding account or a vehicle deeply bound to team interests remains an unanswered question.

54% Crash in Two Days: Collapse of LAB Trust

At the same time that the involved address began intensively depositing LAB into Aster and continuously selling on the DEX, according to AiCoin data, the price of LAB dropped from about 1.2 USD to approximately 0.55 USD in about 48 hours, a cumulative decline of about 54%. On-chain, it can be seen that this address, reportedly linked to the team, sold about 18.4 million LAB in two days, equivalent to about 18.3 million USD, yet still retained about 81.5 million LAB available on-chain, resulting in a significant gap between the sell-off and remaining tokens, which many holders interpreted as a signal of "selling high, still controlling low."

Once ZachXBT disclosed this funding path, the price curve and on-chain behavior rapidly combined into a story: the project-related address made large sales on the DEX, retail investors picked up in the open market, the price halved in a short time, and the concentrated losses mainly affected those investors with the least information advantage. Large-scale sell-offs in the market are typically strong bearish indicators and can trigger panic and chain selling pressure. Now, with the "team address" label attached, many holders no longer view this as merely a significant fluctuation, but as an uprising question about the overall integrity of the project. Whether such behavior constitutes the market manipulation that ZachXBT has accused remains undetermined by any regulatory body or project official, but the erosion of trust is a reality that all LAB holders now face.

81.5 Million LAB to Be Dumped? Potential Selling Pressure Shadow

After trust was breached, the community quickly turned its attention to the tokens that this address has yet to sell. According to the same on-chain source, after completing the deposit and selling of 18.4 million LAB into Aster, this address still holds about 81.5 million LAB, a scale far exceeding that which has been realized. This volume is seen by many holders as "available tokens waiting to be dumped" hanging over the market, and any further concentrated selling from the address could quickly amplify concerns over price pressure.

Expectations around the 81.5 million LAB vary significantly in the market: some believe that previous consecutive sell-offs have already indicated the stance, and continued liquidation is possible; others hope for the party to pause actions, or even to wait for the project party to provide an explanation or arrangement. However, as of now, public information does not mention whether this portion of tokens has a lock-up mechanism, nor is there any clear plan for future reductions disclosed. The on-chain data can only confirm the current holding scale and past 48-hour sell-off records of the address, while whether or when to continue selling at what pace remains mere speculation based on limited information rather than verifiable conclusions.

Manipulation Controversy Unresolved: How Should Investors View Next?

Under the cumulative effect of this substantial sell-off and the 54% drop over two days, the controversy has escalated from an anomalous address to concentrated questions regarding the LAB team's integrity and governance: on one side, the address described by ZachXBT as "early investment related address of the team" depositing 18.4 million LAB into Aster and continuing to sell in a short time, on the other side, the extreme price decline from about 1.2 USD to about 0.55 USD. These two elements have been forcibly overlapped by the community as the core battleground for whether systemic "selling" or even manipulation exists. The key point is that as of July 12, 2026, the LAB team has yet to publicly explain this batch of on-chain evidence and accusations; the involved address still holds about 81.5 million LAB, and whether to continue large trades on the DEX will directly affect the market's judgment of the project party's motives. In the currently highly incomplete information context, what investors can do is not to self-direct endings in emotions, but to closely monitor every change in on-chain public behavior and use cross-verification from different sources to build their factual version, maintaining a cautious independent judgment on the core question of "Did the team manipulate the market themselves?"

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