GALA Sinks 72% In 2023 Alone – Blame Internal Wrangles And Lawsuits?

GALA, the native token of Gala Games, is under immense selling pressure as of early September 2023. Trackers show that the token is down 72% from 2023 peaks when it soared to $0.062 in late January 2023. From there, the token has been edging lower, sinking to $0.017 at spot rates, unwinding over 95% of gains posted in early 2023. To illustrate, GALA is cents away from retesting all-time lows registered in late 2022 at around $0.016.

The drawdown could be pinned to the unfavorable market-wide bear market conditions that have seen top coins, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, surge before dumping, dragging altcoins even lower. The slowdown across Bitcoin has been mirrored in GALA as the token edges lower, reversing gains posted on August 29. 

On this day, Bitcoin rose after a US Court of Appeal ruled in favor of Grayscale, the issuer of GBTC. Even though the court didn’t direct the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to convert GBTC trust to an exchange-traded fund (ETF), the judge didn’t provide clear reasons why they denied Grayscale’s request. BTC prices rallied as odds of the US approving a spot Bitcoin ETF rose, lifting altcoins, including GALA. However, bears have successfully peeled back losses, as the daily chart shows.

Beyond market factors, GALA may plunge to all-time lows primarily because of internal wrangles that could heap more pressure on the token that’s already struggling against unrelenting bears. Court documents show that CEO Eric Schiermeyer and co-founder Wright Thurston filed lawsuits against each other. 

Filings show that Schiermeyer blames the co-founder for illegally obtaining and selling $130 million of GALA. The CEO also claims the co-founder stole node licenses for operating nodes within the Gala game ecosystem. He also cites Thurston’s history of founding companies that often in bankruptcy. The CEO wants the co-founder replaced as director.

The co-founder and his investment vehicle, True North Investments, accuse the CEO of wasting millions of dollars in company assets and engaging in fraudulent practices that harmed the company. The co-founder claims the CEO misused millions, including $600 million of assets, and lending millions of dollars from Gala Games to himself. They also alleged that the CEO created entities in Switzerland and Dubai that, in reality, should belong to Gala Games. The co-founder wants to kick out the CEO, who has held the office since 2021.