A public dispute erupted between Neo’s two co-founders. Eric Chan and Da Hongfei have criticized X over financial management, financial transparency and governance. The disagreement, which had been developing for several weeks, escalated on December 31st, with both sides releasing detailed statements to the community.
At the heart of the dispute over financial transparency
Neo founder and core developer Eric Zhang accused Da Hongfei of not keeping his promise to release financial disclosures. It has something to do with the Neo Foundation (NF). Mr. Zhang asked for a complete and verifiable financial report. Includes a complete inventory of assets managed by the Foundation and detailed expenditure records.
Considering that @dahongfei has not fulfilled its previous commitments, issued no formal public statements, and has not disclosed any relevant financial reports to the community, I am forced to unilaterally issue this statement in the interest of transparency and accountability. https://t.co/ylGFjX6DhG
— Eric Zhang (@neoerikzhang) December 31, 2025
He said this despite a prior promise made during a phone conversation in early December. No formal statement or financial report has been released. Zhang argued that a lack of disclosure prevents the community from assessing how the foundation’s funds are held and used. He described the situation as a “black box.” Zhang also said the deal was concluded based on what he claimed was an agreement. Da Honfei will focus on NeoX and SpoonOS starting January 1, 2026. He will also stay away from issues related to the Neo mainnet.
Dai Hongfei refutes claim to control the Ministry of Finance
Neo’s other co-founder, Da Honfei, rejected Zhang’s accusations and publicly refuted them. He said it was “ironic” that someone would ask him to disclose financial information. He claims control over the majority of Neo’s finances and consensus node voting power.
It is ironic that the person who controls the majority of Neo’s finances, determines consensus node voting, and has no qualms about hijacking the protocol at the expense of the community and token holders would demand “financial disclosure.”
Blockchain…
— Da Hongfei (@dahongfei) December 31, 2025
According to Da, he has repeatedly urged Zhang to move his NEO and GAS tokens from personal custody to a multi-signature wallet managed by NF. He claimed that blockchain projects cannot function securely. If its treasury is still under the control of a single individual.
Da Hongfei said she had previously avoided publicizing the issue to protect the trust of the community. But the community misunderstood his silence, he added. He confirmed that the team plans to release its 2025 year-end financial report for NF and Neo Global Development in the first quarter of 2026. If possible, we plan to share provisional figures in advance.
Governance and conflict of interest allegations
The dispute extended beyond financial reporting to broader governance issues. Zhang made this claim after separating from Neo in the past. Da Honfei has started developing another blockchain project. Zhang described this as a competing effort. He framed this as a conflict of interest that weakened Neo’s internal checks.
It was good. At least for now, there are clear signs that financial reports will eventually be produced.
Before discussing how we should secure the national treasury, let’s first clarify what exists.
That’s non-negotiable.
You are the one who has held the majority of NF’s assets for many years.
So… https://t.co/bB8N4zfOvz— Eric Zhang (@neoerikzhang) December 31, 2025
Mr. Da Hongfei denied these allegations. Instead, it pushed ahead with a proposal to have Neo managed by a single person, out of concern about prolonged delays in securing the Treasury via multisig. Specifically, it said that for the safety of the network and its users, such storage arrangements are “non-negotiable.” As a result, both founders accused each other of misrepresenting the facts, leading to repeated back-and-forth over who controls which assets and why certain funds remain outside of multisig management.
Community reaction and next steps
The public nature of this controversy prompted strong reactions from the Neo community. Many users have called on both founders to relax and focus on releasing clear financial reports. Specifically, he argued that transparency is the quickest way to restore trust. In response, several community members highlighted the risk that the conflict could overshadow Neo’s development progress at a difficult time for the market. As the back-and-forth continues, observers are now focused on whether the team will make the financial disclosures it promised. Asset custody and governance responsibilities will become clear in early 2026. Currently, this disagreement remains unresolved, with both founders maintaining their positions while the debate continues in public.