- Dubai-based Sahil Arora accused of manipulating celebrity-backed crypto tokens.
- Arora allegedly made $30 million by dumping tokens after celebrity promotions.
- Legal gray areas and celebrity complicity complicate enforcement.
Sahil Arora, an Indian-born Dubai resident, has come under fire for allegedly orchestrating a multi-million dollar cryptocurrency scheme involving high-profile celebrities. According to a recent investigation by Bubblemaps, Arora capitalized on the star power of figures like Floyd Mayweather, Davido, Caitlyn Jenner, and Jason Derulo to promote various crypto tokens. Most of these tokens eventually plummeted to zero, leaving investors in the lurch.
The series of tweets made on X revealed that Arora’s involvement in cryptocurrency began in 2017 when he was just 18. However, he began to gain traction between 2020 and 2023, as he launched a series of projects, including ZelaaPayAE, a crypto debit card, and ZelaaNFT, an NFT marketplace. While these projects ultimately failed, Arora reportedly made substantial profits, which fueled his appetite for quick gains in the crypto market.
Furthermore, the investigation sheds light on Arora’s use of Pump.fun, a platform he leveraged to promote these tokens. Arora allegedly paid celebrities up to $200,000 to tweet the contract addresses of these tokens to their followers. However, unknown to investors, Arora held between 25% and 40% of the token supply in various crypto addresses. As soon as the celebrities posted the tweets, Arora would dump his holdings, causing the token’s value to crash.
Bubblemaps has linked over 40 crypto addresses to Arora, revealing that he funneled the profits to a primary wallet, 7Ci23i82, before dispersing them across multiple centralized exchange accounts. The investigation claims that since the beginning of 2024, Arora has off-ramped a staggering $26.4 million, with his highest monthly earnings recorded in August at $6.6 million.
Despite the heavy losses suffered by investors, Arora remains active in the crypto space, reportedly launching new tokens daily on Pump.fun. According to Bubblemaps, his actions fall into a legal gray area, making it difficult for authorities to pursue enforcement.
What complicates matters further is the involvement of celebrities, who, by promoting these tokens, contributed to the financial losses incurred by their followers. This has likely deterred them from pursuing legal action against Arora despite their role in the scheme.
The case has raised significant concerns about regulating celebrity-endorsed cryptocurrency projects, pointing to the need for greater transparency and stricter oversight in the industry.
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