BNB Chain’s Old Tutorial Wallet Was Reused to Launch a Memecoin — Now It’s Suing
BNB Chain says a former staffer reused a training-video wallet to launch ASTEROID, pocketing roughly $628,000 before the network took legal action.
BNB Chain says it is taking legal action against a former employee accused of quietly reusing an old training wallet to launch a memecoin called ASTEROID — and then cashing out around $628,000 once the token took off. If you’ve ever wondered why crypto companies obsess over “revoking access” when someone leaves, this case is a real-world example of what happens when they don’t fully lock the door.
According to BNB Chain, the wallet in question wasn’t new. It was originally created back in February 2025 for a tutorial video showing developers how to deploy tokens through the Four.Meme platform. That demo wallet accidentally produced a token called TST, which traders spotted and piled into, briefly pushing its market cap above $50 million before Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) clarified it was never an official BNB Chain token. The tutorial was pulled, and the wallet was supposed to be retired.
How a deleted key didn’t mean a dead wallet
Here’s the part that matters for anyone holding crypto: deleting a private key from a device doesn’t kill a wallet if someone still has the seed phrase — the 12 or 24 word backup that can rebuild full access from scratch. BNB Chain alleges its former employee kept that seed phrase after leaving the company, generated fresh credentials, and used the same address to launch a new token called Asteroid Shiba, or ASTEROID.
On-chain analytics firm Lookonchain traced the launch and found four wallets spent roughly $10,000 to scoop up 796.7 million ASTEROID tokens — about 79.67% of the entire supply — right at launch. Those wallets later sold 718.8 million tokens for 1,103 BNB, worth close to $638,000 at the time, for an estimated profit of around $628,000, per Lookonchain’s figures.
Importantly, that’s on-chain data showing what the wallets did, not proof of who controlled them. The Block reported it could not independently confirm the wallets belonged to the former employee, and tying a blockchain address to a real person typically takes more than transaction history alone.
BNB Chain distances itself, CZ weighs in
BNB Chain has publicly stated it did not create, approve, promote or control ASTEROID, and says it’s cooperating with authorities while preparing legal action. So far the network hasn’t named the individual, said which jurisdiction the case falls under, or confirmed whether it will pursue civil or criminal proceedings. CZ repeated the allegations on X and urged users to stay cautious, though none of the claims have yet been tested in a court filing.
Adding to the confusion, a separate, earlier project already using the “Asteroid Shiba” name has denied any involvement, saying the newer token copied its branding.
Why this matters if you hold memecoins
For everyday holders, the lesson isn’t really about ASTEROID’s price — it’s about how easily a familiar-looking wallet address can lend false credibility to a brand-new token. If a wallet has history tied to a known name like BNB Chain, traders may assume there’s some legitimacy behind whatever it touches next, even when there isn’t. This case is a reminder to check who actually controls a project before buying in, rather than trusting an address’s past reputation.
Until BNB Chain files formal legal documents or a court weighs in, everything here remains an allegation rather than a proven fact. But the underlying security issue — that a seed phrase can outlive a deleted key and an ended employment contract — is very real, and it’s one every crypto company handling sensitive wallets will now be watching closely.
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