Neo Founders Clash Over Financial Transparency and Project Control

According to Foresight News, Erik Zhang, founder and core developer of Neo, has accused fellow founder Da Hongfei of failing to fulfill his promise to publicly disclose financial reports. Zhang has called for Hongfei to release a complete and verifiable financial report to the community, detailing all assets managed by the Neo Foundation (NF) and itemizing all expenditures. Additionally, Zhang stated that during their most recent phone conversation, an agreement was reached for Hongfei to focus on the operation and development of NeoX and SpoonOS starting January 1, 2026, and to cease involvement with Neo's mainnet. In response, Da Hongfei issued a statement asserting that Erik Zhang controls the majority of Neo's funds and influences consensus node voting. Hongfei emphasized that blockchain projects should not be controlled by a single individual. He has urged Zhang over the years to transfer NEO/GAS tokens from his personal custody to NF's multi-signature address, while Zhang retains the role of key holder. However, Hongfei claims Zhang has consistently delayed this process, recently indicating that the transfer would occur around the completion of the N3 migration. Hongfei explained that he had refrained from publicly addressing the issue to maintain public trust and allow for orderly resolution. He expressed regret that his restraint has been misunderstood, stating, "I should have done this sooner."