Trove Markets has sparked significant discontent among its investors after announcing that it would keep approximately $9.4 million from a token sale initially associated with an integration plan with Hyperliquid. This decision came just days before the token’s launch, notably pivoting its decentralized exchange (DEX) to Solana.
Critics on X have voiced their opinions, accusing the team of failing to meet fundraising expectations after they revealed that the retained funds would be directed towards continuing the development on Solana instead of returning the majority of the raised capital from the Hyperliquid initiative.
Trove had managed to raise over $11.5 million for the token sale related to its integration with Hyperliquid. However, on the preceding Friday, they shifted focus to Solana just before the anticipated token generation event, causing a stir within the community.
One developer from Trove, identified only as “Unwise,” later attributed the pivot to the withdrawal of 500,000 Hyperliquid (HYPE) tokens by a liquidity partner vital for the integration.
Trove disclosed that they would retain $9,397,403 to further develop a perp DEX on Solana, stating that this was the only viable route to ensure the project’s sustainability.
“We can’t reverse every cost already incurred, but we can keep building, and deliver the perp DEX for collectibles,” Trove emphasized.
The project intends to allocate part of these funds toward a developer team for both frontend and backend infrastructure, the hiring of a chief technology officer, and marketing expenses. They also mentioned that over $2.44 million was refunded to investors as part of an effort to maintain distribution integrity, with another $100,000 earmarked for participants of the initial coin offering.
Following the token launch, the value of the TROVE token plummeted more than 95%, dropping to $0.0008 merely ten minutes post-launch, diminishing its market cap from $20 million to below $1 million.
Despite the turmoil, Trove reiterated their commitment, asserting they are not abandoning the project and will continue to pursue its development.
Trove aims to enhance its DEX trading experience by focusing on valuable collectibles like Pokémon cards and skins from Counter-Strike 2, a sector predicted to evolve into a significant market according to crypto asset manager Bitwise.
