Trouble in NFT land rocked the Philippines when it is revealed that an NFT project run by local founders, the Surf Sharks Society, has pulled the rug.
Some of the key communication channels have gone offline or become inaccessible, leading stakeholders and the community to scramble as they try to figure out what really happened.
According to news and statements spread on social networks, the removal of the rug took place during the course of the public minting phase of the project. In a statement posted by the founders on the Surf Shark Society Twitter account, they state that their blockchain developer “abandoned the project and withdrew the public treasury” and the reported amount was worth $25,000 in USDT, with others saying which is potentially higher.
Multiple channels related to the Surf Shark Society also went offline or became inaccessible, including their website and Discord channel. While no statement has been released about the website being taken offline, the founders of the Surf Shark Society have said that they have “moved roles” on their Discord server, explaining why some members were unable to access it when the incident occurred.
However, all hope may not be lost, as the founders of the Surf Shark Society promise a refund for those affected by the incident, though details on what that would look like are not available at the time of publication.
The Surf Shark Society described itself as a collection of 3,333 unique NFTs with designs inspired by anthropomorphic sharks. The project was first announced in late December 2021 and quickly gained popularity by partnering with Filipino influencers as part of its promotional push. The project runs on the Solana blockchain network, known for its cheaper fees and faster transaction times than Ethereum.
About Rug Pulls
Rug pulls is a malicious tactic in cryptocurrency investments in which key members of the project suddenly withdraw middle development along with money from investors and stakeholders.
This happens sometimes when the value of a coin, token, or NFT reaches a high value or once a sufficient number of users exchange their mainnet coins for whatever coins the developers, and project team members, are using. they then withdraw or sell en masse their share of the coin. tokens that reduce the value to zero.
One of the most infamous cases of cryptocurrency rug mining schemes was the Squid Game token rug mining that was caught during a live streaming session by Twitch user The_Dent.
Surf Sharks Society has been one of the highest profile cases in the Philippines, with multiple influencers and partners promoting the product.
