NEO's unique financial setup has come under scrutiny, with hundreds of millions of dollars in crypto assets being controlled by a single individual, Erik Zhang, without multisig protection or formal oversight. Da Hongfei, NEO's other co-founder, has expressed concerns over this arrangement, stating that approximately 85% of the project's assets are controlled by Zhang alone, with an estimated value of between $200 million and $250 million. Da has proposed a restructuring plan, which includes the creation of an independent five-member board, the redistribution of tokens to holders, and the implementation of multisig protection.
In contrast, Zhang's counter-proposal involves staying on the board, retaining the Foundation's current location in Singapore, and conducting a formal investigation into historical asset management. The two co-founders have been publicly airing their disputes since December, resulting in rival governance plans and an unsuccessful mediation effort.
The situation has led to a stalemate, with each side 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. However, the success of this plan relies heavily on Zhang's cooperation, and it remains uncertain whether he will agree to transfer the single-signature token holdings to a multisig lock address.