1INCH, the native token of the DeFi exchange aggregator 1inch, had a very volatile ride over the past week. The token gained and lost double digits within a matter of days, all due to alleged manipulation from a crypto whale who executed significant 1INCH orders.
Prithvir Jhaveri, co-founder, and CEO of blockchain analytics platform Loch took to Twitter earlier today to share his analysis of the 1INCH’s price action:
Data from CoinMarketCap showed that 1INCH’s price catapulted 41%, going from $0.41 to $0.58. The rally caused the token’s market capitalization to go from $280 million all the way up to $545 million. However, the rally was cut short after 1INCH’s price reached a two-month high of $0.58 on July 17, 2023.
The following 24 hours saw the token take a nosedive, reaching as low as $0.37 after a 36% decline, leaving crypto investors confused. According to Loch founder Prithvir Jhaveri, the massive volatility in 1INCH’s price was caused by the trading activities of a single crypto whale. As per data gathered by Jhaveri, the whale held 102 million tokens before the pump.
On the day of the pump, the whale increased his 1INCH holdings to a whopping 140 million tokens. The buy order for 38 million tokens worth roughly $60 million at the time, triggered the rally on July 17. The Loch founder claimed that the pump was likely artificial. The rally was followed by a sharp decline in 1INCH’s price on the same day.
The dramatic price crash was the result of a significant token dump by the crypto whale in question. The whale behind the pump decreased his 1INCH holdings to 91 million tokens, which was less than what he held prior to the pump. The token dump paired with Celsius Network’s decision to offload 1INCH tokens worth over $2.2 million on the same day, led to a significant decline in the token’s price.
