ZKasino Rug Pull Scandal: $32 Million Ethereum at Risk

Over the past day, numerous trending posts on X (formerly Twitter) have shed light on the array of challenges plaguing the network.

ZKasino Accused of $32 Million Ethereum Rug Pull

The platform troubles began last month after decentralized P2P order book exchange ZigZag Exchange laid various accusations against ZKasino. These include the network developers diverting funds intended for project development to personal use.

According to ZigZag, ZKasino lied about its funding and had failed to pay numerous developers and contractors working on the platform.

“The initial money to build ZKasino was stolen from the ZigZag Treasury. The ZKasino founders are 3/5 signers on the ZigZag multisig so they were able to use the funds to fund their own activities…The $40 million ecosystem fund they announced isn't real, and will likely never be paid out in any real currency,” ZigZag affirmed.

While most of these allegations flew under the radar, several crypto community members have voiced grievances over the platform's alleged removal of a prior commitment to return bridged Ethereum.

Its initial promise led to significant fundraising success, as evidenced by on-chain data indicating that the deposit address used for the campaign accumulated more than 10,500 ETH, totaling approximately $32 million. However, ZKasino has responded to these raging concerns, describing them as fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD).

“The ZKasino network will still go live; it has been delayed due to exchange listings.” the team added.

Meanwhile, the drama surrounding the project has already led the MEXC exchange to cancel its token listing, attributing its decision to its efforts “to safeguard the rights and interests” of its users. Similarly, Ape Terminal said it was monitoring the situation. However, it clarified that token sales associated with the project will be canceled if the situation deteriorates.