Yigit Taha OZTURK 
Movement Labs, one of the most promising Ethereum layer-2 projects, has suspended co-founder Rushi Manche amid mounting backlash over a controversial deal involving 66 million MOVE tokens dumped into the market.
Governance Under Fire
Allegedly, Movement Labs struck a market-making deal with Rentech, posing as an affiliate of Chinese firm Web3Port. Internal documents reveal Rentech represented both Web3Port and the Foundation itself, sparking conflict-of-interest concerns. The firm sold all its 66M MOVE tokens within 24 hours of launch, sending shockwaves through the crypto community.
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Reports claim Manche forwarded early drafts of the deal and maintained involvement with both Movement Labs and the nonprofit Foundation—despite their intended separation. Legal advisers reportedly called the deal “one of the worst” they’d ever reviewed, yet it proceeded, leading to massive market disruption.
Major Exchange Reactions
Binance responded by offboarding the market maker and freezing $38 million in proceeds, citing misconduct. Later, Coinbase announced it would suspend MOVE trading on May 15, further compounding the project’s turmoil.
Following these announcements, MOVE dropped 14% to $0.20, with a daily loss of 21%, according to Coingecko. A third-party governance audit by Groom Lake is underway to determine Manche’s role in the deal.
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