Digital tokens slumped on Monday as the global crypto market cap plunged 1.30% in the past day to $3.92 trillion.

Most assets depict weakness after relative stability over the weekend.

This article evaluates Story (IP), which displays bearish sentiments, driven by the project’s leadership shakeup.

Story remained on the investor radar over the weekend as its co-founder, Jason Zhao, revealed he is exiting his full-time role.

He will now become a strategic advisor, ending his 3.5-year term as Story’s co-founder.

Zhao took it to X to reflect on his journey as Story’s leader, calling it his most meaningful experience.

He highlighted that Story started as a mere whiteboard sketch but grew into an ecosystem supporting intellectual properties (IPs) from recognized names like BTS and Balmain.

Moreover, the project secured over $130 million from renowned funders like a16z (Andreessen Horowitz).

Looking back, building Story has been the most meaningful experience of my life. What began as a whiteboard sketch when I was 22 turned into more than I could have imagined: a network supporting IPs from Balmain to BTS, with millions of transactions and $130M+ in backing from partners like a16z.

After 3.5 years building Story from scratch, I’m stepping out of my full-time role. I’ll stay closely involved as a strategic advisor. While incubating Poseidon, I rekindled my original passion from my DeepMind days: applying AI to frontier industries like science and space.

Despite achieving key milestones, Zhao believes it is time to explore a new calling.

He will prioritize developing the AI project Poseidon, which focuses on applying high-tech intelligence to leading industries like robotics, science, space exploration, and biopharma.

While Zhao maintained an optimistic tone in his farewell, enthusiasts weren’t forgiving.

Most individuals expressed frustration across social media platforms. They criticized the co-founders’ timing.

Zhao exited only weeks after Story’s TGE (token generation event).

Many perceive this as a substantial red flag, speculating that the project lacked a comprehensive product roadmap to justify its enormous funding and market valuations.

One X users highlighted Zhao’s betrayal, stating:

I honestly don’t even care about the token gymnastics. You sold a dream to 100 young idealists who bet their careers on you during one of the hardest job markets in a generation. Then you completely bailed for greener pastures and the only narrative more oversold than your own. Absolutely crazy work. I hope this reputational damage follows you for the rest of your career.

The native token hovers at $5.66 after a swift drop from an intraday high of $6.04.

Negative sentiments (as the community reacts to Zhao’s departure) and broad market declines drive Story.

IP will likely print more red candlesticks on its daily chart as selling momentum dominates the short-term outlook.

Notably, most tokens plummet after leadership exit, especially when a key player exits.

For instance, Shiba Inu lost more than 10% in January after Shytoshi Kusama stepped down as SHIB’s leader.

The post Story (IP) turns bearish amid the co-founder’s departure and product concerns appeared first on Invezz

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