The world's largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance was shocked by insider trading, with the official confirming on Monday that an employee was suspected of using insider information, taking advantage of their position to privately promote newly listed tokens on the official community account, gaining improper benefits, with clear violations currently leading to suspension.
However, what shocked the market the most was that after Binance released an announcement confirming insider trading, the meme coin involved — 'Year of yellow fruit' — not only did not face a sell-off crash, but instead became a focus of speculation due to receiving an alternative 'official certification', with its price rising instead of falling, even reaching a historical high, once again exemplifying the market logic of 'traffic is justice' in the crypto circle.
According to a statement released by Binance Futures, the internal audit department received a report on December 7, indicating that a Binance employee used the official community account to promote newly listed tokens, suspected of profiting from it.
The investigation results showed that after the 'Year of the Yellow Fruit' was issued at 13:29 on December 7, the employee posted promotional content on Binance's official X account within just one minute, and some of the text and images used were consistent with 'Year of the Yellow Fruit'.
Binance pointed out that after verification, it was confirmed that the relevant employees were suspected of using their positions for personal gain, severely violating company regulations and professional conduct codes. Immediate suspension measures were taken against the involved employees, and the relevant departments in the jurisdiction of the employee were proactively contacted to pursue accountability according to legal procedures.
According to DEX Screener data, the 'Year of the Yellow Fruit' skyrocketed after launching on the BNB Chain, promoted by involved employees, with the trading pair against Wrapped BNB surging to 0.0038 USD within an hour. However, more astonishingly, after Binance confirmed insider trading suspicions, buying surged again, and the price instantly broke through 0.0061 USD, setting a new high.
As of now, the price of the 'Year of the Yellow Fruit' has fallen to 0.0024 USD, with a fully diluted valuation (FDV) of approximately 2.4 million USD, and trading volume reaching 17.4 million USD (buy order 8.5 million USD, sell order 8.8 million USD), with the number of holding addresses reaching 3,961 people.
The token name 'Year of the Yellow Fruit' originated from a post on December 4 by Binance's official account, quoting renowned macro investor Raoul Pal at Binance Blockchain Week saying, '2026 is the year of the yellow fruit (banana)', as he has often mentioned the concept of 'Banana Zone' on social media, to describe the steepest and most explosive upward phase in the cryptocurrency market cycle.
2026 is the year of the yellow fruit, according to @raoulGMI as he kicks off Day 2 of #BinanceBlockchainWeek and moderated by Nic from @coinbureau
“Liquidity, a weaker dollar, and big fiscal stimulus – those are the marker stones to watch.” – His outlook for 2026. pic.twitter.com/E10Ow3lEbl
— Binance (@binance) December 4, 2025
According to screenshots leaked from the community, the employee suspected of insider trading seemed to have premeditated. They had previously posted on the official account hinting and encouraging the community to 'plant wisely' and 'harvest abundantly', repeatedly mentioning the imagery of 'yellow fruits'.
Thanks to the rapid growth of the perpetual contract exchange Aster, the rise of Binance Alpha, and the explosion of the meme coin ecosystem, the BNB Chain has performed well this year, with the trading volume of the ecosystem leader PancakeSwap even returning to the levels of the 2021 bull market. This incident undoubtedly had a certain impact on the reputation of the BNB Chain.
In this regard, Binance emphasized: 'Binance has always adhered to the principle of putting users first, upholding the values of openness, fairness, and justice, and has zero tolerance for any violations. We will further strengthen internal management, continuously improve systems and processes, block all possible spaces for abuse, and prevent similar incidents from happening again.'
To demonstrate its determination to rectify, Binance announced that it would distribute a total of 100,000 USD in rewards, which will be shared among 5 whistleblowers who submit valid information through the official reporting channel (audit@binance.com).
"Binance confirmed that an employee involved in 'insider trading' was suspended, and the token 'Year of the Yellow Fruit' unexpectedly surged to a new high" This article was first published on (Blockchain Guest).
