Movement Labs parts ways with co-founder Rushi Manche, rebrands as Move Industries under fresh leadership, while Binance postpones the second HODLer airdrop for MOVE holders.

Movement Labs, the team behind the MOVE token and Movement Network, has undergone a significant restructuring and rebrand following months of controversy tied to its token markets and governance. After initially suspending co-founder Rushi Manche amid a third-party review into market maker activity and internal decision-making, the project formally terminated him on May 7 and announced that it would continue under a new name, Move Industries, with fresh leadership. Co-founder Cooper Scanlon also stepped down as CEO, and the organization appointed Torab Torabi as CEO and ecosystem architect, with Will Gaines taking the roles of President and Chief Marketing Officer. The foundation has framed these moves as the start of a new chapter focused on improved governance, transparency, and ecosystem support. The leadership overhaul and rebrand come in the wake of a scandal involving market maker Rentech, which allegedly sold around 66 million MOVE tokens in December 2024, generating an estimated profit of 38 million USDT and contributing to sharp price declines and later a Coinbase delisting of MOVE trading pairs. Binance subsequently disclosed that it had frozen profits tied to the incident and engaged with the project and its foundation, leading to heightened scrutiny of Movement Labs’ internal controls and market maker relationships. In response, the project pledged to sever ties with Rentech, initiate a third-party governance review by Groom Lake, and establish a $38 million USDT reserve-funded buyback, aiming to repair damage to its community and token holders. Against this backdrop, Binance has also postponed the second HODLer airdrop for MOVE holders, pushing back a distribution that had been anticipated by segments of the token’s community. Although the exchange has not framed the delay as permanent, the move reflects ongoing uncertainty around the project as it transitions to Move Industries and implements promised reforms in oversight, vetting of liquidity partners, and transparency measures such as public town halls. The combination of a leadership reset, rebrand, market maker fallout, and delayed token incentives leaves the MOVE ecosystem in a rebuilding phase under its new corporate identity and executive team.

✨ AI-generated background, compiled from web sources — not editorial content.

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