A Solana-based trading bot project, AquaBot, has reportedly vanished with $4.65 million in presale funds just hours before its planned token generation event, sparking outrage across the community.
Blockchain investigator ZachXBT first flagged the incident, noting that AquaBot’s presale wallet moved 21,770 SOL into multiple intermediary addresses before routing the funds to instant exchanges, splitting the transfers into four tranches in a common attempt to obscure the trail.
AquaBot had promoted its presale as a “gamified” mechanism, offering investors random multipliers on allocations and initially promising full token unlocks at launch with no vesting.
Minutes before the scheduled token generation, the project suddenly imposed vesting on presale buyers, a sharp change that alarmed participants and triggered accusations of fraud.
Following the fund transfers, the team locked replies on all X posts, deepening concerns among investors.
Replies have been restricted on AquaBot's X account.
Several prominent Solana platforms and influencers had recently promoted AquaBot, including Meteora, Quill Audits, Helius, SYMMIO, and Dialect.
Many community members expressed frustration at what they see as repeated patterns of high-profile endorsements lending legitimacy to projects that ultimately rug pull.
One user commented:
“Once again, reputable protocols interact and make partnerships with ruggers, and then they act like nothing happened.”
AquaBot marketed itself as a low-fee Telegram trading bot, promoting a 0.25% transaction fee and a unique “liquidity ladder” presale to stagger entry prices for buyers.
The system was pitched as a solution to uniform cost bases seen in traditional presales.
While the model initially generated excitement on X, it instead followed a familiar trajectory of sudden withdrawals and disappearing communication, leaving recovery prospects minimal as funds were dispersed across exchanges.
Replies left by investors before it was restricted. (Source: X)
Replies left by investors before it was restricted. (Source: X)
This incident is part of a wider pattern of Solana presale scams.
ZachXBT has previously highlighted multiple projects raising millions before disappearing, including cases where funds were partially withheld or routed to fake accounts.
In total, over 33 presales have reportedly siphoned $150 million in SOL, while social engagement for the network continues to rise, and major treasury initiatives by Galaxy Digital, Jump Crypto, and Multicoin Capital have bolstered market confidence.
Meteora, one of the platforms associated with AquaBot’s launch, issued a statement acknowledging its retweet of the project due to an “innovative liquidity design” but insisted it was not directly involved.
The co-lead said:
“Sometimes that results in a good launch, sometimes it doesn’t.mI recognize we could have managed expectations better and will further tighten internal processes to reduce this from happening.”
The AQUA token never formally listed on any exchanges, leaving presale buyers with significant losses.
The rug pull is now considered one of the largest Solana presale collapses of 2024, highlighting persistent risks in projects that rely on hype, influencer support, and novel mechanics without transparency.
Community voices continue to call for greater diligence and accountability to prevent similar events in the future.
Observers note that AquaBot followed a recurring playbook: flashy presale, lottery-style allocations, last-minute vesting changes, and influencer amplification.
One user commented:
“We keep seeing the same scam playbook, flashy presale, randomizer gimmicks, KOL support, then a last-minute vesting switch. It’s rinse and repeat.”
The incident has left thousands of investors burned and casts a shadow over Solana’s growing trading bot sector.
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