NEO Co-Founder Holds $200 Million in Project Crypto, Sparking Governance Dispute

The NEO project's treasury, valued at hundreds of millions of dollars in crypto assets, has been controlled through personal wallets with no multi-sig protections and little formal oversight. According to co-founder Da Hongfei, Erik Zhang, the project's other co-founder, holds around 85% of the assets, worth between $200 million and $250 million, with single signature control. Da has proposed a restructuring plan, which includes redomiciling the Neo Foundation to the Cayman Islands, establishing an independent five-member board, and redistributing tokens to holders. Zhang has countered with a proposal that includes an investigation into historical asset management and remaining on the board. The dispute has sparked a governance crisis, with the project's market capitalization at $197 million, and the token having dropped 98% from its 2018 peak. Da's proposal aims to achieve mutual disarmament, where both he and Zhang would relinquish control over the assets, but Zhang's cooperation is required for the plan to succeed.