Could Bald Token's Rug Pull Be Linked to Sam Bankman-Fried's Alameda Research?

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Is there a connection between the rug pull of the short-lived BALD meme coin and Sam Bankman-Fried’s Alameda Research?

The hype around the BALD token led to a staggering price increase of four million percent and attracted a whopping $68 million from traders. Now, crypto sleuths have uncovered potential links between Alameda Research and the wallet responsible for deploying the BALD token.

The BALD meme coin, named as a humorous reference to Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong’s bald head, made its debut on July 30 and saw an astonishing 289,000% surge in value within the first 24 hours of trading.

However, the BALD price then imploded after the token’s anonymous developer removed a substantial amount of ETH from the liquidity pool. This sudden drop in value has led to accusations of a rug pull, which the developer denied and then subsequently confirmed.

I didn't sell a single token at any point since deployment. Just added/removed 2 sided liquidity and bought

— Bald (@BaldBaseBald) July 31, 2023

Speculation Points Towards Alameda Research

Analyst Colin Wu has brought attention to significant financial movements involving the wallet responsible for deploying the token. This wallet was observed transferring substantial sums of money to FTX, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange founded by Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF).

The frequency and size of these transactions have raised eyebrows and sparked interest in understanding the relationship between the token’s deployer and FTX. “Considering the size of the funds, it is reasonable to judge that this is a trader within Alameda or a related market-making team,“ said Wu.

It is rumored that the Memecoin BALD deployer (0xcc…6389) may be a person related to FTX or Alameda, and some even think it is SBF himself.

The address had frequent and large transfers of funds with the FTX, and another address of owner had $20 million in funds transactions…

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) August 1, 2023

Another wallet connected to the deployer was found to be involved in transactions totaling $20 million with addresses linked to Alameda Research. This connection between the deployer and Alameda adds another layer of intrigue to the situation, prompting speculation about possible affiliations or collaborations between the two entities.

Wintermute’s head of research, Igor Igamberdiev, made significant findings concerning another wallet address, 0xccFa05, which he associated with Alameda. According to Igamberdiev, the owner of this wallet demonstrated a strong understanding of decentralized finance (DeFi) and actively participated in various DeFi activities.

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Alright, I've been sitting on this news all day, but let's look at the @BaldBaseBald deployer.

This is definitely someone from Alameda, but I don't think we can safely say that this is @SBF_FTX (even though he is a psycho)

Let's go👇 pic.twitter.com/qs7e2nMTI1

— Igor Igamberdiev (@FrankResearcher) August 1, 2023

Notably, the wallet engaged in trading on platforms like dYdX and Oasis, and also participated in voting on proposals within the SushiSwap community.

Moreover, the wallet appeared to be highly active on several major cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance, FTX, and Coinbase. It was also heavily involved in DeFi farming projects, such as Yearn Finance and Cream, managing to accumulate millions of dollars in assets through these ventures.

Despite these apparent connections to Alameda, Igamberdiev was cautious about directly attributing the wallet to SBF himself. While the actions aligned with Alameda’s activities, he expressed doubt that Bankman-Fried personally controlled the wallet saying “This is definitely someone from Alameda, but I don’t think we can safely say that this is @SBF_FTX”

Based on on-chain data, there are indications of interactions between the deployer contract of the BALD token and a specific wallet that has been linked to Alameda Research.

https://twitter.com/redactedp4mp/status/1686095057143881729

The presence of these connections has caught the attention of several blockchain experts on X, formerly known as Twitter. These findings have raised questions and sparked discussions about the potential role of Alameda Research in the activities surrounding the BALD token.

Further investigation and analysis are underway to understand the nature and implications of these interactions. Such scrutiny is crucial for ensuring transparency and integrity within the cryptocurrency space.

Experts Doubt SBF’s Involvement in Alleged Scheme

Despite the alleged link to Alameda Research, it seems unlikely that Sam Bankman-Fried could be involved in the alleged scheme due to strict internet usage restrictions imposed on him as part of his bail conditions.

SBF’s internet access has been tightly controlled, and there are claims that he has been using a simple flip phone which is not connected to the internet since April. As a result, he does not have access to Twitter or any other online platform.

The pseudonymous trader HORSE also expressed doubts about the likelihood of SBF’s involvement, encouraging his large following to disregard such unfounded claims.

Similarly, crypto influencer Tiffany Fong, who has had multiple conversations with SBF since his arrest, dismissed the conspiracy theory. She clarified that SBF’s restricted internet access makes it improbable for him to be operating under the handle @BaldBaseBald on Twitter.

Some screenshots of SBF's current bail conditions. Btw, SBF is paranoid rn bc he recently showed Caroline Ellison's private writings to the NYT & the DOJ sees this as potential "witness intimidation." I really do not think he's decided RIGHT NOW is the time for a rugpull. pic.twitter.com/gS2a3tK3Cm

— Tiffany Fong (@TiffanyFong_) July 31, 2023

Fong also revealed that SBF’s visitors undergo thorough security checks and are not allowed to bring in any electronic devices from the outside, further undermining the possibility of his involvement in the alleged scheme.