Gurhan Kiziloz — actual founder
Hidden for over two years. Publicly identified as BlockDAG's actual founder in December 2025 after the Alpine Racing default and the DL News investigation. His previous company Lanistar was liquidated after the FCA issued a 2020 consumer warning for unauthorized financial activity. Linked publicly to Big Eyes, Dogetti, and Poorcoin — three crypto projects that collapsed within months of launch.
On August 7, 2025 — during the active BlockDAG presale — Kiziloz married Youmna Khoury, known as "Youmi Beauty," a Lebanese beauty influencer with millions of followers. The wedding was held at Villa Erba, Lake Como, Italy, and was documented as a major luxury event across multiple media outlets including Harper's Bazaar Arabia and Arabia Weddings. The event featured major influencers and performers.
Kiziloz also operates Nexus International, a crypto-gambling platform reported to generate approximately $1.2 billion in annual revenue, and Spartans.com, a gaming platform positioned to compete with Bet365 and Stake. These connect BlockDAG's blockchain infrastructure to Kiziloz's broader gambling empire.
On May 14, 2026, a Brazilian court ordered Tether to freeze $213 million in USDT across 48 wallets linked to Kiziloz, over alleged unpaid gambling taxes and unregistered cryptocurrency token sales covering 2021 to 2024. This is a civil dispute. Kiziloz is appealing the claims.
⚠ Pattern of failed projects across multiple jurisdictions. Active civil dispute in Brazil. $213M frozen by Tether court order.
Antony Turner — former CEO (Apr 2024 – Dec 2025)
The public face of BlockDAG throughout the 450-day presale. Gave the interviews. Fronted the AMAs. Fired in December 2025 following the Alpine Racing default and the DL News investigation. Subsequent reporting has indicated he was a figurehead while Kiziloz controlled the finances.
Nic Van Den Bergh — current CEO (Dec 2025 – present)
Former Chief Marketing Officer. Promoted to CEO via Telegram announcement four days after Turner's departure. Has not held a press conference. AMAs since his promotion have not addressed missing miners, broken staking, delayed listings, or the $442M raise figure — except for the leaked January 6 investor call, where he walked the figure back to "closer to $200M."
Liza Van Den Berg — whistleblower
Former payroll manager. Tenure 19 months. Let go in December 2025 with the rest of the in-house finance team. Public statement March 14, 2026: "the presale was oversold by over 100%." Sworn declaration pending.
ZachXBT — independent investigator
Pseudonymous on-chain investigator. Contributed the wallet analysis underlying the DL News investigation. Continues to publish updates on BlockDAG-controlled deposit clusters and the OTC trail. Not affiliated with this site.