For a long time, the treasury of NEO, a cryptocurrency project, was managed in an unconventional manner: hundreds of millions of dollars in crypto assets were controlled through personal wallets without multi-signature protections or formal oversight. According to co-founder Da Hongfei, the individual in control of these assets is Erik Zhang, the project's other co-founder and the architect of its core protocol. Da stated that "around 85% is controlled by Eric alone with single signature," and that it had never been transferred to any individual or multi-signature wallet.

The native NEO and GAS tokens held by Zhang are currently valued between $200 million and $250 million, which exceeds the project's current market capitalization of $197 million. The two founders have been publicly airing their disputes since December, resulting in rival governance plans and an unsuccessful mediation effort. Da has proposed a restructuring plan that involves redomiciling the Neo Foundation from Singapore to the Cayman Islands, establishing an independent five-member board, and redistributing approximately 26 million NEO and 40 million GAS tokens to tokenholders. In contrast, Zhang's proposal involves staying on the board and keeping the Foundation in Singapore.

Zhang's plan also calls for a formal investigation into historical asset management, including provisions to address potential corruption, improper asset transfers, and concealment of public assets. Da has dismissed these provisions, stating that there is no corruption or misuse of funds.

However, some observers have noted that the project's treasury holds approximately $460 million in assets, roughly double its market value, while the token has dropped 98% from its 2018 peak. The situation has resulted in a stalemate, with each founder holding leverage over the other. Da has framed his proposal as a form of mutual disarmament, where both he and Zhang would sacrifice their individual control over assets.

The outcome depends on Zhang's cooperation, and if he refuses, the community may need to take action.