MOVE Token Drops Following Coinbase Delisting and $38M Insider Selloff

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Coinbase, the leading crypto exchange in the U.S., suspended trading for Movement (MOVE) and eventually delisted the cryptocurrency from its trading platform on May 15, 2025. This happened after leaked reports of MOVE token market manipulation and token governance issues.

Before Coinbase lists a token on its trading platform, it assesses the project’s business viability, technical security, and regulatory compliance. The exchange continuously monitors listed tokens to ensure they adhere to its standards. After the Movement Labs scandal, Coinbase set MOVE to limit-only trading, restricting users from opening market orders on the platform.

Suspicious Market-Making Contract Prompts Investigation

In December 2024, market maker Web3Port had liquidated 66 million MOVE tokens at a $38 million profit. The selloff occurred just one day after MOVE was listed on major exchanges, which disrupted buy-side stability and prompted global crypto exchange Binance to investigate.

Soon, Binance offboarded the market maker involved in the MOVE token selloff, freezing Web3Port’s profits to potentially compensate affected investors.

Following the market maker’s termination, leaked documents revealed abnormal market-making deals between the Movement Foundation and Rentech, a middleman with no digital footprint. Initially, Rentech proposed a market-making contract allowing it to control 5% of MOVE’s total token supply.

Additionally, the deal had other unusual clauses, including a provision enabling Rentech to liquidate its MOVE allocation should the crypto’s fully diluted market capitalization reach $5 billion, distributing half of the profits to the Movement Network.

Lack of Transparency and Mismanagement Within Movement Labs

Before Movement signed a revised version of Rentech’s market-making deal in December 2024, another leaked contract showed a previous agreement between Web3Port and Movement, but with Rentech serving as a representative of Movement Labs.

The pre-existing contract was tied to Movement shadow advisers, who were allegedly given control of up to 10% of MOVE’s total token supply. These allegations, along with the $38 million liquidation controversy, ultimately led to the termination of Movement co-founder Rushi Manshe on May 7, 2025.

Coinbase Delisting Induces 20% MOVE Token Price Drop

After the Coinbase MOVE token delisting, the Ethereum L2 crypto’s price fell by 20%, pushing the token to trade within the $0.20 to $0.18 range. Subsequently, MOVE’s market capitalization dropped below $500 million, bringing it to the low-cap crypto category.

Even more surprising is the MOVE token’s price drop during bullish momentum in the crypto market. Bitcoin (BTC) experienced an uptick to the $97,000 mark, and while a large inflow of investments filled the digital asset industry, MOVE’s price continued to collapse.

Movement’s Crash: Promising L2 Crypto Turned Nightmare Investment

In early 2025, Movement Labs eyed a $100 million Series B funding round, which valued the company at $3 billion. At the time, MOVE had already reached an all-time high price of $1.45 per token, with a $2.5 billion crypto market cap.

Crypto retail flocked to secure MOVE tokens and invest in the future of Ethereum Layer 2 technology. However, poor market conditions, and primarily the Movement Labs scandal, caused a downward pressure in price that’s still observed today. Based on MOVE token Coingecko analytics, the crypto is down by 87.5% from all-time highs.

How MOVE’s Controversy Affects Future Listings

Coinbase’s removal of MOVE from live trading has several implications, both for upcoming Coinbase listings and currently listed tokens. For new crypto assets, the platform could raise crypto exchange listing standards, ensuring that internal token governance issues are appropriately considered.

Based on the Coinbase listing process, available tokens are subject to ongoing monitoring to ensure continued compliance with listing standards. With the rise of delisted crypto assets from top exchanges, regulatory bodies responsible for regional cryptocurrency market access may add new vetting requirements for trading platforms.

What’s Next for MOVE Token Holders?

Since the MOVE crypto market manipulation case, the Movement Foundation has issued a third-party audit on the market maker and its external activities. Current MOVE holders should stay updated with any news and results regarding the external review and official announcements on Movement’s new governance.

Additionally, investors are encouraged to stay tuned for the Movement’s new leadership with Manshe’s departure. As of May 7, Movement announced new leadership under Move Industries, which comprises early Movement Labs employees and two of the crypto’s founding leaders.

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Final Thoughts: Why Clean Governance is Important

In light of the MOVE token controversy, investors and project builders are reminded of the importance of transparent token governance and responsible management. Investors must be careful of projects that lack internal clarity, and developers must allow complete transparency if they want their projects to succeed in the long run.

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