Plasma News Today: Plasma Founder Denies Insider Sales, but On-Chain Clues Spark Distrust

Plasma founder Paul Faecks has denied allegations of insider token sales following a dramatic 46% price drop in the native XPL token shortly after its September 25 launch. The founder's public rebuttal on X (formerly Twitter) sparked a 15% rebound in XPL, though the token later stabilized at $0.93, a 5.6% gain from pre-announcement levels XPL Token Price Jumps 15% as Founder Addresses Controversy^[1]. Despite these assurances, skepticism persists within the community, with critics questioning the transparency of ecosystem and growth token allocations Plasma Founder Denies Team Selling After 50% XPL Price Dump^[2].

Faecks emphasized that all team and investor XPL tokens are locked for three years with a one-year cliff, and no team members have sold any tokens. He also distanced Plasma from market maker Wintermute, stating the firm has never been engaged as a service provider. The founder highlighted that only three of the project's 50 team members had prior experience at controversial projects like Blast or Blur, with others hailing from established institutions such as Google, Goldman Sachs, and Square Plasma Founder Denies Insider Selling After XPL Token Plunges …^[3].

On-chain analysis by independent researcher ManaMoon revealed over 600 million XPL tokens were transferred from the team vault to exchanges, including Binance and Bitfinex, in the days preceding the price collapse. Critics argued these movements could indicate coordinated TWAP (time-weighted average price) selling strategies to minimize market impact. Faecks dismissed such claims, but community members countered that the founder's statements left room for unaddressed sales of non-team tokens Plasma CEO Paul Faecks denies allegations of team members …^[4].

Plasma's tokenomics structure provides further context. The project allocated 40% of its 10 billion XPL supply to ecosystem growth, with 8% unlocked immediately for liquidity and DeFi incentives. The remaining 3.2 billion tokens are scheduled to unlock gradually over three years. Team and investor allocations are subject to a one-year cliff and a two-year vesting period, aligning with the founder's claims of locked holdings Plasma Docs - Build on Plasma^[5].

Despite the controversy, adoption metrics remain robust. Dune Analytics data shows Plasma added approximately 5,000 new users daily, accounting for over 70% of its daily active users. The network processed 2 million transactions in its first week, with 1.4 million occurring in the last 12 hours alone Plasma Founder Denies Insider Sales as XPL Price Recovers^[6]. Analysts note this organic growth suggests sustained demand for a stablecoin-focused blockchain, even as investor sentiment remains divided.

The project's integration with Tether-related services and its zero-fee USD₮ transfer model have drawn comparisons to Tron, which dominates USDT volume. Plasma's focus on institutional partnerships and scalable stablecoin infrastructure positions it as a potential competitor in the space, though its success hinges on resolving transparency concerns What is Plasma (XPL)? - Coin Engineer^[7].

Plasma faces a critical juncture as it navigates accusations of market manipulation and builds trust with its community. While the founder's denial of insider sales temporarily stabilized the price, unresolved questions about token movements and the project's association with controversial teams could resurface. The coming weeks will test whether Plasma can leverage its growing user base to solidify XPL's recovery or face renewed sell-offs.