How Sahil Arora Netted $3M with Celeb Token Pump-and-Dump Schemes

In 2024, Sahil Arora, a Dubai-based investor and promoter, executed a series of high-profile token schemes involving celebrities. 

Using a platform called Pump Fun, he orchestrated a campaign that included direct messages to celebrities, offering them significant payments in exchange for promoting the token.

The core of Arora's scheme involved manipulating the token's price through hype and celebrity endorsements. 

Once the token was launched and its price was artificially inflated through celebrity tweets, Arora, who held a substantial portion of the token’s supply, sold off his holdings. This rapid selling, often executed immediately after the promotional push, caused the token’s value to plummet, leaving other investors with worthless assets.

Bubblemaps has traced over 40 crypto addresses associated with Arora. These addresses were used to manage and manipulate the token supply. Typically, Arora held between 25-40% of the token’s total supply in various addresses. 

After the token launch, he consolidated these holdings and moved the proceeds to a main wallet, identified as 7Ci23i82. Funds were then regularly transferred to centralized exchanges.

Arora’s Financial Gains and Discrepancies

Arora’s methods were lucrative. Reports from Bubblemaps indicate that he earned around $30 million through these schemes in 2024. The breakdown of earnings, however, shows considerable monthly fluctuations: $3 million in January, $1.8 million in February, $3.2 million in March, $2.5 million in April, $4.8 million in May, $2.5 million in June, $2 million in July, and a staggering $6.6 million in August.

However, ZachXBT has criticized Bubblemaps’ calculations. According to ZachXBT, the figures reported by Bubblemaps were inflated due to an error that involved incorrectly attributing a Poloniex wallet address to Arora. 

ZachXBT’s revised estimate suggests that Arora’s actual earnings from these schemes were likely between $2 and $3 million, significantly lower than previously reported.

Celebrities involved in these schemes often face scrutiny and legal issues. While some promote tokens for financial gain, the true value and legitimacy of these projects are frequently questionable.