Fetch.ai CEO Humayun Sheikh has provided a $250,000 reward for data on OceanDAO’s multi-signature pockets signers. The announcement reignited tensions with Ocean Protocol over allegations of misappropriation of funds associated to the alliance forward of the 2024 merger.
The controversy dates again to a token conversion that occurred earlier than the Synthetic Tremendous Intelligence (ASI) Alliance, an initiative that introduced collectively Fetch.ai, Ocean Protocol, and SingularityNet, took impact.
Ocean Protocol accused of pre-merger switch
Sheikh provided a $250,000 reward to anybody who offered data linking OceanDAO’s multisig pockets signers to the Ocean Protocol Basis. Multisig wallets require the signatures of a number of customers to approve a single crypto transaction, making them a typical safety mechanism for shared management.
In response to on-chain analytics platform Bubblemaps, earlier than the ASI merger occurred, Ocean Protocol transformed 661 million OCEANs into 286 million FETs. Blockchain knowledge reveals that 270 million FETs had been later transferred to exchanges, of which 160 million had been transferred to Binance and 109 million to GSR Markets.
Sheikh claimed that the conversion violated the spirit of the alliance’s belief. “Funds meant for the neighborhood had been misappropriated,” he wrote on X, urging Binance and GSR to research.
We’re providing a $250,000 reward to anybody who can uncover the OceanDAO signatories and their ties to the Ocean Basis. https://t.co/PmGBtou9vI
— Humayun (@HMsheikh4) October 21, 2025
Ocean Protocol denied the allegations as “baseless” and introduced that it could formally reply.
Binance had already ended assist for OCEAN deposits on October 15, days earlier than Sheikh’s public assertion. The change didn’t cite the dispute because the trigger, however the timing prompted hypothesis.
Sheikh additionally subsequently pledged to fund a multi-jurisdictional class motion lawsuit to carry Ocean Protocol accountable.
Authorized fallout and market impression
Analysts say the feud might utterly change investor confidence in AI and token partnerships. The ASI merger, as soon as valued at greater than $7 billion, was geared toward unifying decentralized AI improvement, however is now dealing with reputational harm.
Sheikh’s bounty transfer might immediate deeper scrutiny of multi-signature governance and token custody throughout crypto alliances. The authorized proceedings might set a precedent for future consortium-based blockchain initiatives, particularly these involving asset conversion.
Ocean Protocol formally withdrew from the ASI Alliance on October ninth, however no rationalization was given concerning the motion of the disputed tokens. The escalating dispute highlights the fragility of belief in crypto joint ventures that lack clear governance mechanisms.
FET efficiency over the previous yr / Supply: Coingecko
As of October twenty first, Fetch.ai’s native token FET is buying and selling round $0.25, reflecting a 9% decline over the previous 24 hours amid heightened market volatility and neighborhood uncertainty. FET reached an all-time excessive of $3.45 in late March 2024. Meaning the present worth has fallen about 92% from its peak.
OCEAN efficiency over the previous yr / Supply: Coingecko
Ocean Protocol’s native token “OCEAN” additionally fell 4% from yesterday to round $0.25. The all-time excessive was $1.93 in mid-April 2021, and the present worth is about 87% beneath that peak.
The article Fetch.ai CEO gives $250,000 reward over OCEAN allegations appeared first on BeInCrypto.
