In the volatile realm of the NFT world, controversy is often an inherent part of the game. Recently, a major dispute has arisen involving the Azuki team and its founder, Alex Xu, popularly known as Zagabond. The central point of contention is their supposed ‘rug pulling’ strategy, employed during the coining of “Azuki Elementals”. This move has deeply upset the project’s staunch supporters. Now these original Azuki investors, who have unwaveringly backed the brand through all its trials and tribulations, are airing their grievances and advocating for legal action.

Their complaints stem from the release of Azuki’s new series, “Azuki Elementals”. Despite the prevailing bear market, the series sold out in less than 20 minutes at a price of 2 ETH each, racking up an impressive $38 million. However, the event has since been marred by allegations of unfair practices and a precipitous drop in the price of the original Azuki Collection, which plummeted from over 17 ETH just a week ago to just 5.8 ETH today.

Numerous issues arose during launch, ranging from complaints about the short 10-minute window for whitelisting Mint, to website overloads leading to Mint crashes, and excessive duplication of features between the original and new Azuki. Azuki Elementals. Investors expressed concern about the possible dilution of the value of the first generation Azuki. The controversy escalated when the project team reportedly transferred 20,000 ETH shortly after launch.

In reaction to this, the Azuki community has taken a stand. They have submitted a proposal, urging Azuki DAO to hire a lawyer and start a lawsuit against Zagabond, accusing him of “breaking” multiple projects.

In addition, they requested that the Azuki DAO recover a refund of 20,000 ETH from the team and use it to foster growth within the Azuki community. The proposed funds would be intended to incentivize artists, content creators, and builders, thereby enhancing the overall prosperity of the ecosystem.