Crypto alternate Binance has introduced that it’s investigating SQUID, the Squid Game-themed cryptocurrency, and can flip over no matter data it uncovers to the suitable regulation enforcement company.

The information comes shortly after the token skilled a meteoric rise and swift market crash that noticed traders lose tens of millions of {dollars}—a surefire signal that the entire thing was an enormous fraud.

“Our security team has launched an investigation – as a gesture of goodwill – and is exploring options to support the community,” mentioned a Binance spokesperson, when reached for remark by Gizmodo. They added that they might be “blacklisting addresses to prevent withdrawals from Binance accounts linked to the scam and deploying blockchain analytics to identify the bad actors.”

“The Binance Investigations Team will be providing their findings to law enforcement in the appropriate jurisdiction,” they mentioned.

SQUID launched lower than two weeks in the past and rapidly drew immense curiosity—skyrocketing over 2,000% in market worth in a matter of days. The token is, after all, based mostly on the hit Netflix present, which is ready in South Korea and entails a sadistic “battle royale” whereby debt-ridden members play deadly youngsters’ video games for an opportunity to win billions of received (Korea’s forex).

The coin’s protocol was constructed on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC) and was launched by unknown builders who promoted it by placing out a poorly written “white paper” in addition to a constellation of social media accounts designed to push the coin.

About every week in the past, Gizmodo identified that SQUID was clearly some kind of rip-off. The incontrovertible fact that traders might put cash into the coin however couldn’t get any cash out once more was the obvious signal of shadiness. A number of days later, the entire thing collapsed in what seemed to be a traditional “rug pull”—a sort of exit scam whereby builders of a crypto mission will out of the blue abandon it and elope with traders’ cash.

The coin hit a market zenith of some $2,860 on Monday, then subsequently plummeted to zero. Afterward, a number of of the coin’s social media accounts went lifeless and the builders put out a statement on Telegram claiming they have been stepping again from the mission. They seem to have made off with some $3.4 million in investor funds.

Fairly applicable {that a} coin named after a present in regards to the ills of unchecked capitalism seems to be a cash-guzzling rip-off. The collapse reportedly led to gargantuan losses for traders—together with one man who allegedly lost his $28,000 life savings.

CoinDesk originally reports that Binance had determined to analyze SQUID. Representatives for the crypto alternate additionally instructed Gizmodo that its customers needs to be cautious of initiatives which are new and “high-risk.”

“These types of scam projects have become all too common in the DeFi space as speculative crypto investors seeking the next ‘moon shot’ are quick to invest in projects without doing the appropriate due diligence,” the Binance spokesperson mentioned. “Speculators seeking potentially unrealistic, high-risk “lambo” or “moon shot” alternatives needs to be cautious of the dangers of investing in new or unverified property, whether or not in crypto or the securities markets.”

In what looks as if a possible metaphor for cryptocurrency writ massive, the truth that SQUID has crashed and is now visibly being investigated as fraud has not deterred droves of individuals from desirous to put money into it. Newsweek reports that, as of Thursday morning, individuals have been nonetheless furiously Googling find out how to purchase the coin, though it’s not clear there’s something left to put money into. Bafflingly, the cryptocurrency market index CoinMarketCap reveals the worth of the Squid Game coin has surged by 664% whereas warning that customers can’t promote it and it’s an apparent rip-off.