Concerns have been raised by analysts at SlowMist regarding a potential “soft rug pull” that took place on March 10. This incident involved a 100 Ether transaction from an AssangeDAO address to a recipient seemingly connected to the decentralized autonomous organization. SlowMist, a blockchain forensics firm, highlighted the need for caution and thorough due diligence when dealing with AssangeDAO, as the true intentions of the organization are still unclear.
AssangeDAO gained prominence in 2022 for its support of Julian Assange, the Australian activist known for creating WikiLeaks. The platform is dedicated to revealing classified information from undisclosed sources. In response to a high court ruling on Assange’s extradition in the United Kingdom, supporters established AssangeDAO to advocate for his freedom. The initiative managed to raise over $53 million in cryptocurrency contributions, including a donation from Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.
The funds raised by AssangeDAO are intended to be used for bidding on a unique nonfungible token (NFT) called “Censored,” created by digital artist Pak in collaboration with Assange. The proceeds from the NFT sale will go towards Assange’s defense fund and raising awareness about his fight against extradition to the United States.
AssangeDAO’s fundraising success of $53.7 million made it the largest amount ever raised by a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) through the community funding platform Juicebox. This surpassed the previous record set by ConstitutionDAO, which raised $49 million in late 2021 to bid on a first edition print copy of the United States Constitution.
However, a collaborative analysis by SlowMist and RescuETH revealed that starting in 2022, AssangeDAO transferred most of its funds to various addresses, including some associated with cryptocurrency exchanges like Kraken and Coinbase. Additionally, the group moved over 1,000 Ether to unidentified smart contracts, spreading the funds across multiple addresses. AssangeDAO has not made any public statements regarding these transfers at the time of writing.
SlowMist analysts emphasized the importance of transparency in DAO operations, as these recent transfers have raised questions about the ultimate destination of the funds. The whereabouts of the funds remain unclear, and further clarity from AssangeDAO is needed.
On November 8, 2023, AssangeDAO announced that 16 members of the U.S. Congress had signed a letter urging Attorney General Merrick Garland to drop the charges against Assange. On March 26, a U.K. court granted Assange permission to appeal his extradition to the United States.
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