The creators behind the FinSoul gaming venture have come under fire, with allegations suggesting they orchestrated a significant exit scam, swindling investors out of $1.6 million through deceptive market tactics.
A recent analysis by blockchain security firm CertiK alleges that the FinSoul group might have used hired individuals to impersonate executive roles, collecting investments with the claim of crafting a gaming platform.
However, contrary to their pledges, the developers are suspected of pocketing the funds for personal gain, leaving backers high and dry.
This supposed scam saw the diversion of $1.6 million in converted Tether (USDT) from trusting investors straight to the coffers of the FinSoul team.
Allegedly, in an attempt to mask the money’s origins, the developers funneled the funds through a cryptocurrency tumbling service named Tornado Cash.
Compounding concerns surrounding this incident is the fact that this isn’t the inaugural accusation leveled against the FinSoul team.
Earlier in the year, the decentralized finance (DeFi) initiative, Fintoch, proclaimed its use of advanced tech to shape the FinSoul metaverse.
Their declaration highlighted the incorporation of avant-garde technologies, like Unreal Engine 5 and Cocos 2D, aiming to offer diverse gaming environments.
However, in a twist of events, it emerged that the Fintoch DeFi initiative itself had been implicated in an exit scam. They purportedly made off with a staggering $31.6 million, later attempting to cleanse the illicit gains via the Tron blockchain.
Reacting to these serious claims, CertiK unveiled that the FinSoul group had undergone a rebranding in August, emerging as “Standard Cross Finance (SCF).”
CertiK presented evidence indicating striking similarities between the top brass of Fintoch and Standard Cross Finance, suggesting they were the same individuals.
Shockingly, these key players, encompassing roles like CEO, CFO, and COO, turned out to be performers from the showbiz world.
Further deepening the intrigue, promotional materials for an entertainment enterprise even featured the project’s supposed chief technology officer.
In spite of the shadow over their credibility, the newly minted Standard Cross Finance ensemble persisted in championing FinSoul across digital channels such as YouTube and Telegram.
Their promotional tactics included a video showcase of what they presented as an “R&D Headquarters.” Moreover, they orchestrated a marketing event in Vietnam, presumably to further entice and mislead potential backers.
Blockchain Data Shows Market Manipulation by FinSoul
Blockchain records indicate that on October 10, FinSoul initiated its token contract on the BNB Smart Chain network, generating 100 million FinSoul (FSL) tokens in the process.
Subsequently, the account that deployed the token distributed a fraction of these tokens across various other accounts, keeping a massive stash of 97 million FSL tokens for itself.
One notable transaction involved setting up a liquidity pool for FSL on PancakeSwap, a renowned decentralized trading platform.
The initial market activity for FSL saw its price at $0.3911 per token. Remarkably, within a matter of hours, this figure soared to a staggering $17.5774, before finally stabilizing around the $5 mark.
In a dramatic turn of events, between 4:30 pm and 5:00 pm UTC, the token’s value took a nosedive, hitting almost rock bottom.
This alarming depreciation was simultaneous with two pivotal occurrences: Firstly, there was a transfer of the vast reservoir of 97 million FSL tokens to a different address. Subsequently, a massive sale ensued, where the entire stash of tokens was offloaded into the liquidity pool. This maneuver siphoned off a whopping $1.6 million in Binance-pegged USDT from said pool.
Intriguingly, despite the shadow of alleged deceptive maneuvers, the Standard Cross Finance brigade has been able to allure investors back into their fold.
They’ve given FSL a fresh lease of life by introducing a revamped token contract. As of now, this token is trading at a value of $1.29 each.
