$480 million in $LAB tokens moved to fresh wallets during a sharp Bitget price pump, raising questions around on-chain activity.
Author: Arushi Garg
12th May 2026 – Around 100 million $LAB tokens, worth approximately $480 million, were withdrawn from Bitget’s hot wallet to 10 freshly created wallets over a 10-to-12-hour window on May 12, 2026. On-chain analysts have flagged the transfer as suspicious activity.
High Signal Summary For A Quick Glance
XM
@xm_build
@wiseadvicesumit 32 percent of circulating supply is a lot of heavy lifting to move in one transaction
🚨 Something very strange is happening with $LAB right now. Over 100 MILLION $LAB tokens ($480M) were withdrawn from Bitget into 10 freshly created wallets. That’s roughly: • 32% of the circulating supply • Moved within hours • While $LAB was pumping aggressively And this https://t.co/nP7tXpW2it
11:43 AM·May 12, 2026
John Doe
@Ndfrek
@KGorld Wait for updates
@Ndfrek So what next? What are we buying?
10:18 AM·May 12, 2026
kenzygraphicsworld
@KGorld
@Ndfrek So what next? What are we buying?
Several fresh wallets have withdrawn over $445M $LAB in the last 12 hours & once again, Bitget is at the center of it Same setup appeared before the $RAVE move Large exchange outflows + new wallet accumulation usually means smart money is positioning quietly behind the scenes https://t.co/jensQEPbDn
10:17 AM·May 12, 2026
High attention and emotional sentiment detected.
The withdrawal represents roughly 32% of $LAB’s circulating supply of ~310 million tokens. Each of the 10 receiving wallets collected between 8.6 million and 10.8 million tokens in sequential transfers, according to on-chain data tracked by Arkham Intelligence and analyst accounts including Lookonchain, Yujin, and EmberCN.
All 10 wallets had zero prior transaction history. On-chain records show they received gas fee funding approximately three days before the transfers began.
The source of all 10 withdrawals is a Bitget hot wallet labeled by Arkham Intelligence at address 0x1AB4973a48dc892Cd9971ECE8e01DcC7688f8F23. The $LAB contract on BNB Chain sits at 0x7ec43Cf65F1663F820427C62A5780b8f2E25593A.
None of the receiving wallets carry public Arkham labels. One example wallet cited in analyst reports is 0xF05cEd86EDc1857C977b70728F3c330E9e89B151. No large outflows from any of the 10 wallets have been reported since the transfers.
Bitget reportedly still holds more than 150 million additional $LAB tokens.
On-chain investigator ZachXBT posted about the situation on X on May 12, linking the activity to broader accusations against Bitget’s leadership. “Shawn Liu is the Bitget big boss who allows these scams to operate behind the scenes while Gracy Chen is only the face of it,” ZachXBT wrote.
Analyst @wiseadvicesumit flagged the withdrawal in a widely shared post. “Over 100 MILLION $LAB tokens ($480M) were withdrawn from Bitget into 10 freshly created wallets,” the post read. “That’s roughly 32% of the circulating supply, moved within hours, while $LAB was pumping aggressively.”
SpecterAnalyst provided additional context in a separate update. “Late yesterday, a total of 100M $LAB (~$479M) was withdrawn from Bitget to 10 fresh addresses that had been funded with gas fees three days earlier,” the analyst posted. “Bitget continues to enable this crime.”
Timeline: LAB token pump, Bitget withdrawals, and on-chain wallet activity
Ten brand-new wallets on BNB Chain receive small gas-fee funding from coordinated addresses three days before major token movements begin.
$LAB starts pumping aggressively on Bitget, climbing toward a new all-time high near $7.77 amid elevated trading volume.
Large $LAB withdrawals begin moving from Bitget’s hot wallet to the 10 pre-funded fresh addresses across a roughly 12-hour window.
Approximately 100 million $LAB tokens, worth about $480M–$514M at the time, are distributed across the 10 wallets.
Latest on-chain monitoring shows no major selling or further large transfers from the 10 receiving wallets.
This is not an isolated event for $LAB. On-chain records reveal a series of large token movements since April 2026.
In April 2026, suspected team-linked addresses deposited 100 million LAB tokens to Bitget. That batch represented about 43% of circulating supply at the time. Additional deposits of 40 million or more tokens followed in early May, with gas-fee coordination detected across the depositing wallets.
On May 1, $LAB experienced a 500%+ price pump. The surge was followed by an 84% crash that wiped out approximately $250 million in value. Between May 7 and May 11, ZachXBT and SpecterAnalyst published public accusations of market manipulation tied to LAB and Bitget. They also referenced parallels to prior activity with the $RAVE token.
The May 12 withdrawal follows this established pattern of large supply movements timed around price spikes.
Moving 32% of circulating supply off a major exchange into brand-new wallets during a price pump is atypical for legitimate large-scale custody or OTC moves. Standard institutional transfers usually involve known wallets, gradual pacing, or public announcements.
The combination of zero-history wallets, pre-funded gas fees, and sequential timing suggests premeditation, according to the analysts tracking the flows. This pattern can enable wash trading, exit-liquidity preparation, or off-exchange supply control.
Legitimate moves, such as market-maker rebalancing or institutional custody transfers, typically show wallet history, Arkham or Nansen labels, or slower pacing. None of these characteristics apply to the 10 receiving wallets.
Neither LAB’s official account (@LABtrade_) nor founder Vova Sadkov (@vsadkovv) has issued a public statement on the withdrawal. Bitget leadership, including CEO Gracy Chen and Shawn Liu, has also remained silent on this specific event.
No custody-migration statement, rebalancing explanation, or OTC deal announcement has surfaced. Bitget’s own news arm reported the withdrawals through Odaily-sourced coverage, but offered no editorial commentary.
$LAB traded between $4.18 and $6.70 in the 24-to-72-hour window around the event. At the time of the withdrawals, tokens were priced between $4.80 and $5.14, according to CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap data.
The 24-hour trading volume spiked to between $137 million and $155 million. The token recently hit all-time highs above $6 with multi-billion-dollar fully diluted valuations. Order book depth on Bitget remains CEX-dominant.
Some users on X have framed the withdrawal as “whale accumulation” or bullish supply tightening. The dominant analyst and KOL narrative, led by ZachXBT and SpecterAnalyst, characterizes it as a continuation of suspected manipulation.
$LAB is the native token of LAB, a multi-chain trading terminal that aggregates spot, limit, and perpetual trading across Solana, Ethereum, and BNB Chain. The platform offers a browser-based interface with AI-enhanced execution, sub-second trade speeds, fee discounts, rewards, and buyback/burn mechanics funded by protocol revenue.
The project raised approximately $5 million in funding, plus an additional $1.5 million community round. Investors include Amber Group and Selini Capital. $LAB has a total supply of 1 billion tokens, with roughly 310 million in circulation.
The key question is whether the 10 wallets begin moving or selling tokens. No large outflows have appeared yet, but analysts are actively monitoring.
Traders should watch for any official response from LAB or Bitget. A public statement explaining the transfers would shift the narrative significantly. The absence of communication, combined with the established pattern of large movements before price swings, keeps suspicion elevated.
Major outlets like CoinDesk, The Block, and Bloomberg have not yet covered the story. Broader coverage could accelerate scrutiny of both the project and Bitget’s role.
This is not financial advice. Do your own research before making any investment decisions.
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