Programmer Burns $1.6M ETH, Accuses Hedge Fund CEOs

Programmer Burns ETH, Levels Serious Accusations

In a dramatic turn of events, a self-identified Chinese programmer, Hu Lezhi, burned 603 ETH (approximately $1.65 million) and donated 1,950 ETH (approximately $5.35 million) in a series of blockchain transactions. These actions followed on-chain messages accusing executives of the Chinese hedge fund, Kuande Investment (also known as WizardQuant), of using "brain-computer weapons" against employees and former employees.

Key Allegations and Donations

• Hu Lezhi specifically accused Kuande Investment CEOs Feng Xin and Xu Yuzhi of the alleged weapon use.
• A significant portion of the donated ETH was sent to WikiLeaks (711.52 ETH) and a Ukraine donation address (700 ETH).
• An additional 1,238 ETH was distributed to various other addresses.

The largest single transaction involved burning 500 ETH, sending it to an Ethereum null address, permanently removing it from circulation.

Kuande Investment and its Executives

Kuande Investment is a quantitative trading hedge fund. Its CEO, Feng Xin (PhD in Statistics, Columbia University), serves as Co-Founder and Chief Risk Officer, while Xu Yuzhi (mathematics background, Renmin University of China) is the Chief Investment Officer.

Community Reaction and Speculation

The incident has generated significant buzz on social media, with crypto users actively investigating Hu Lezhi’s wallet activity. The event has even inspired the creation of Solana-based meme coins, highlighting the far-reaching impact of this unusual occurrence.

The source of the funds used for both the burn and donations appears to be wallets associated with OKX and Binance.

Codeum: Ensuring Blockchain Security

This incident underscores the importance of robust blockchain security practices. Codeum, a leading blockchain security and development platform, offers a range of services to protect projects and investors, including:

• Smart contract audits
• KYC verification
• Custom smart contract and DApp development
• Tokenomics and security consultation
• Partnerships with launchpads and crypto agencies

Contact Codeum today to learn how we can help secure your blockchain project.