A dispute between Fetch.ai CEO Humayun Sheikh and the Ocean Protocol Foundation has intensified, resulting in legal threats, online accusations, and a response from Binance, all surrounding approximately 286 million Fetch.ai (FET) tokens valued at around $84 million.
This conflict originates from the Artificial Superintelligence (ASI) Alliance, a 2024 merger that brought together AI-centric crypto projects Fetch.ai, Ocean Protocol, and SingularityNET under a unified token framework.
On Wednesday, Sheikh alleged that Ocean Protocol minted and transferred millions of OCEAN tokens prior to the merger. He claimed that the project later converted these into FET and transferred large amounts to centralized exchanges and market-making firms without appropriate disclosure.
“If Ocean as a standalone project did this, it would be considered a rug pull,” Sheikh stated on X, explaining how 719 million OCEAN were minted in 2023, with 661 million exchanged for 286 million FET in July 2025. He alleged that parts of these tokens were later moved or liquidated.
Binance limits support for OCEAN tokens
In light of the escalating conflict, crypto exchange Binance announced it will halt support for Ocean deposits starting next Monday, Oct. 20.
While the exchange noted that users can still make deposits via other supported networks, it warned that ERC-20 deposits made after Oct. 20 “will not be credited and may lead to asset loss.”
Although the exchange did not cite the dispute as the reason for this action, the restriction on ERC-20 deposits suggests that it is implementing internal risk controls or investigations, as many of the contested tokens are based on Ethereum.
Sheikh interpreted Binance’s decision to discontinue support for the tokens as the exchange “heeding” his public calls on X for an investigation into Ocean Protocol’s token transfers.
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Sheikh vows class-action lawsuits, Ocean Protocol responds
Sheikh promised to finance class-action lawsuits across three or more jurisdictions and urged Binance, GSR, and ExaGroup to investigate. He also called on FET tokenholders to gather evidence against Ocean Protocol, stating he would create a channel for them to submit their claims.
Ocean Protocol responded on X, categorically denying the accusations and labeling them as “baseless claims and harmful rumors.”
In an official statement on X, the company asserted that its treasury remains intact and that it had proposed waiving confidentiality over an adjudicator’s findings pertaining to the dispute. Ocean contended that Sheikh declined this proposal.
“Ocean is operational and thriving,” the post stated. “We are preparing counterarguments to the various unfounded claims and allegations while adhering to legal boundaries.”
The mention of an adjudicator indicates that the dispute may have already entered a formal legal arbitration process, likely based on the merger framework governing the ASI Alliance’s token conversions.
Cointelegraph reached out to Fetch.ai and Ocean Protocol but had not received a response at the time of publication.
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