EigenLayer Price Spikes Despite $5.5M Token Sale Scandal and Justin Sun’s Sell-off
Vijay Gir5 Oct 20242 min read
The price of EIGEN has unexpectedly jumped by 9% over the past 24 hours. This comes during an ongoing investigation into an unauthorized $5.5 million token sale. The sale could have broken lock-up agreements, which forbid employees and early investors from selling their tokens. As investigations continue, the market is still showing interest in the token’s future.
$5.5M Unauthorized Token Sale Under Scrutiny
EigenLayer is investigating the suspicious wallet that transferred 1.67 million $EIGEN tokens. These stolen tokens are worth $5.5 million and were reportedly sold through MetaMask wallet breaking locking rules. These rules prevent early investors and employees from trading their tokens before September 2025. The wallet, flagged by Arkham Intelligence, is connected to EigenLayer’s Gnosis Safe. This has raised questions about the company’s internal controls.
EigenLayer is now investigating whether the sale came from an employee or early investor. The team has promised to release more information as they learn more.
Security Breach Behind the Sale
EigenLayer in an update to the community confirmed that this sale has resulted from a security breach. The compromise has not impacted the broader ecosystem. The email thread to an investor with details of the unlocking was hacked and resulted in this stealing and selling of 1.67 million $EIGEN Token. The attacker then swapped the tokens for stablecoins, moving the funds to centralized exchanges. While some of the money has been frozen, law enforcement is working on recovering more of it.
EigenLayer emphasized that this incident didn’t affect its core protocol or token contracts. The broader system remains safe.
Justin Sun’s Sell-off Adds to the Pressure
Just before the token sale controversy, Tron founder Justin Sun sold 5.37 million EIGEN tokens. He made around $21 million by selling tokens he had received through airdrops. His decision to sell so soon after the token unlock on October 1 led to increased selling pressure. Sun moved the proceeds from his sale into the Aave v3 protocol.
Despite these setbacks, EIGEN’s price bounced back. On-chain data shows some investors are buying the token, believing in the protocol’s long-term value.
