The Layer-1 Stable network, specializing in stablecoins, announced the end of the first phase of its pre-deposit campaign. The project attracted an impressive $825 million in stablecoins, but also sparked controversy regarding potential insider activity.
A campaign of surprise and doubt
Although the Stable team suggested starting the campaign on Wednesday morning (October 22), the official launch of pre-deposit vaults was only announced on Friday the 24th. This time discrepancy caused a wave of suspicion in the cryptocurrency community. Users donated funds in hopes of receiving an allocation of the network’s native token, but the circumstances surrounding the campaign raise serious doubts about its fairness.
According to data from Stable’s pre-deposit vault address, only 195 users hold tokens representing their share of deposits. This is a surprisingly low number for a project that has raised over $800 million, suggesting an extreme concentration of capital in the hands of a few participants.
Suspicious payments before the official start
Even more disturbing are the discoveries of a cryptocurrency researcher operating under the pseudonym “astronomica”. Analysis of on-chain data showed that ten wallets deposited a total of $600 million (about three-quarters of the total amount) almost half an hour before the official announcement of the campaign. This is a classic warning sign indicating the possible activity of insiders who had access to the information in advance.
The situation brings back memories of the famous scandal related to the Blast network, where similar practices caused a storm in the community. The concentration of such large funds in such a short time, before the official start, raises questions about equal opportunities for ordinary participants and the transparency of the entire process.
Will phase two be fairer?
The Stable team announces that this is only the first phase of the campaign, and “Phase 2” is to start soon. The question remains whether the next stage will be conducted in a more transparent way and whether ordinary users will be given a real chance to participate without competing with insiders.
The Stable network positions itself as a stablecoin-centric platform, which in theory should attract users looking for stability and predictability. However, the manner in which the first phase of the pre-deposit campaign was carried out calls into question the credibility of the project and may effectively discourage potential participants from engaging in subsequent phases.
The cryptocurrency community is increasingly demanding answers from the Stable team over allegations of favoritism towards insiders. In an industry where trust is as valuable a currency as tokens, this type of controversy can have long-lasting consequences for a project’s reputation.
Time will tell whether Stable will be able to rebuild credibility during Phase 2, or whether it will join the list of projects that lost community support due to a lack of transparency from the start.
