https://twitter.com/thedefiedge/status/1486753304055013390
1 Sifu's Role While Dani is the “face” of Wonderland,
runs the day-to-day. He has control of the treasury and makes the decisions. Wonderland is a DAO. The community voted to KEEP Sifu as the treasurer a few months ago.
/2 Sifu's Background It’s common for founders to be anon due to privacy and safety reasons. What are his qualifications to run a $1b treasury? Here's his background in his own words • Limited partner at a Large Fund • Built several startups including 1 that went public
/3 But who is Sifu REALLY? • Omar Dhanani • in 2005, he ran a marketplace that trafficked stolen credit cards. He also committed burglary and computer fraud. • He was sentenced to 18 months in a US prison. • He moved to Canada and changed his name to Michael Patryn.
/4 His biggest scam was Canadian Exchange, Quadrigacx
• Quadrigacx is a Canadian exchange that collapsed in 2019.
• The exchange was a Ponzi
• The co-founder, Gerald Cotten, mysteriously died in India.
He was cremated yet no one was able to verify that he ACTUALLY died.
• $198m of funds were missing. Cotten was the "only" person who had access, the funds were lost.
• Omar (Sifu) was a cofounder of Quadrigacx
• He has changed his name multiple times and gotten plastic surgery to elude authorities. Onchain data shows missing funds Quadrigacx transferring to sifu.eth address
https://twitter.com/tayvano_/status/1486629672280485891
/5 Dani discovered Sifu's Identity a Month Ago but kept it secret
• He’s a person that believes in giving second chances.
• Sifu has always treated him right and has been doing a great job.
https://twitter.com/danielesesta/status/1486591436233404421
/6 Dani Messed Up
• Dani has a responsibility to the investors to be transparent.
• Sifu didn’t serve time for his crimes. 2nd chances are given AFTER justice is served.
• WE were not given the chance to make the decision ourselves.
/7 Merlin is Bitfinex CFO?
• People are SPECULATING that Merlin (Co-founder of Abra) is actually Giancarlo, the CFO of BitFinex.
• BitFinex has been accused of a ton of shadiness. They’re behind Tether.
/8 Why is Sifu's Identity a Big Deal?
• Should we trust our $ with a scammer?
• People are questioning what oth
hadiness there is to uncover
• People are questioning Dani's judgment. He kept Sifu's past a secret once he found out, and he's still defending him.
/9 What’s the future of Wonderland now?
• There’s a vote to remove Sifu as treasurer and replace him.
• There’s a proposal to merge Wonderland and Abracadabra.
Tetranode (a large Whale), doesn't think it'll happen
https://twitter.com/Tetranode/status/1486605449046679557
• Wonderland still has a massive treasury. It could rebuild with a new Treasurer in place.
• Another option is close down the project. Liquidate the treasury and return all funds back to wMemo holders.
/10 What Should You Do?
I don't know. I am not a financial advisor.
This morning I liquidated my position in Wonderland at a loss.
(wMemo / MIM) on Sushi. I will redeploy that $mim somewhere else.
I believe that I have a higher chance of recouping my funds on other projects.
/11 Can Wonderland Make a Comeback?
Maybe.
• The treasury is still massive. • Some people still trust Dani. A new treasurer could turn things around.
But my investment strategy is narrative-driven.
A lot of trust has been lost, and rebasing projects overall.
/12 Are Your Funds Safe?
Your funds should be safe.
The treasury is locked under a multi-sig.
But if you want to be cautious, you should go to snow trace and revoke access.
/13 a Statement from Sifu
Sifu has made a statement this morning.
He has confirmed that he IS "Michael Patryn" and is asking for a second chance.
I believe you deserve a 2nd chance once you pay for the crimes you've committed, not before.
/14 Accountability
I've been promoting Wonderland since my account started.
I've probably poured in 80+ hrs of labor in the past two weeks writing threads.
I saw a lot of investors who were confused and scared.
The protocol kept changing, and I wanted to help.
I wouldn't have promoted it if I knew Sifu's history.
I always do risks assessment, but I didn't see this coming.
I can only do my best with the information available.
Sifu was doxxed to Dani, and I trusted Dani's judgment.
I focus on cutting-edge projects in DeFi and that comes with higher risks. I made a mistake. I'm sorry. All I can do is to put my best effort forward and be transparent with you. Thank you.
https://twitter.com/milesdeutscher/status/1486909965248131072
What happened with @danielesesta and @0xSifu ?
In this thread I'll cover:
- What went down regarding the @danielesesta @0xSifu scandal
- What happened to $TIME, $SPELL and $ICE
- My thoughts on the situation
- What this means for the crypto market
Let's dive in
2/ It all started when @zachxbt discovered the true identity of @0xSifu
, revealed to be Michael Patryn. He confronted @danielesesta
via DMs to find out if he was aware of Sifu's identity.
https://twitter.com/zachxbt/status/1486591682728673282
3/ Michael Patryn has a horrible history.
- Co-founder of QuadrigaCX ($169m stolen)
- Arrested for identity theft (convicted felon)
- History of fraud, ponzi schemes and name changes
How did a criminal like this end up as CFO of @Wonderland_fi ?
4/
@zachxbt's conversation with Daniele reveals that Dani was privy to the situation and made the decision to not disclose this information with the community. This was his first mistake. If he had disclosed this information and acted earlier, things may be less ugly.
5/ @danielesesta 's response was also handled poorly imo. He stated that the "past of an individual doesn’t determine their future".
But do you really think a convicted felon and fraudster should be handing a multi million dollar treasury?
https://twitter.com/danielesesta/status/1486591436233404421
6/ After this news leaked, all projects affiliated with Dani took a huge hit. $TIME, $SPELL and $ICE all dropped ~40% (-70% for the week) as investors cut ties with the "frog nation" projects.
7/ Dani acted to remove Sifu from his position as treasury manager, which received an 83% backing in favour of removing Sifu as per the snapshot.
https://twitter.com/danielesesta/status/1486711002221539329
8/ The issue is, the community's passion (and thus the success of these projects) are driven by @danielesesta 's ability to lead and build a dedicated and loyal community.
Now his reputation has taken a hit, it's very hard to see how a project like $TIME could succeed.
9/ Honestly, I'm very saddened to see such a divide amongst the community. As Daniele is building on $FTM and $AVAX, there's crossovers as the communities are inextricably linked. It pains me to write this thread but it's also important to keep you updated during hard times.
10/ Andre was clearly disappointed also, and responded to the controversy in a manner I really respected. He said he's "still planning on working with him", but reading between the lines there's clearly there's been damage done to the relationship:
https://twitter.com/AndreCronjeTech/status/1486607111094255622
11/ Let's discuss the repercussions that this scandal could have on $TIME, $SPELL, $ICE and across the broader crypto market as a whole.
12/ If $MIM loses peg, it could have some harsh downstream effects.
@AlamedaResearch have started exiting MIM, and I personally exited my MIM positions for other stables such as USDC and DAI. It may not be the risk right now.
https://twitter.com/equalscash/status/1486819899376902147
13/ To be fair, an arbitrage opportunity now opens up for those who wish to take advantage. People with outstanding loans can repay debt for cheap, generating profit and thus restoring the peg. It's possible the peg goes either way, but we're on thin ice.
https://twitter.com/danielesesta/status/1486821520467013632
14/ For the first time in months, the Degenbox strategy is easily accessible. But I'm staying away (for the time being), because I'd like more clarity before making any financial decisions involving MIM or Daniele's projects.
https://twitter.com/Route2FI/status/1486827513066176513
15/ There's theories that this fallout could potentially affect UST, as people withdrawing from degenbox could negatively affect the UST peg (thus hurting Anchor). It's all speculation at this point, but it's something to be aware of.
@stablekwon has assured us he's not worried.
16/ So, how do I think this will affect the market? Well its safe to say, $TIME and $SPELL have big issues. I think there's a scenario where $SPELL recovers, as its a highly profitable project as far as revenue is concerned. But maintaining the MIM peg is crucial.
17/ As for $ICE, unfortunately its collateral damage. It's a Dani project, and now that Dani's reputation has been smashed the community driven aspect has dissipated. Fundamentally its great tech, but at the end of the day consumer sentiment drives this market.
18/ The downstream effects are likely to affect DeFi too. Any treasury or DAO with exposure to $TIME and $SPELL have already seen a significant hit, and we've seen a sell off across affiliated DeFi protocols. Keeping our eye on the MIM and UST pegs is also a crucial factor.
19/ I'll keep you updated as this situation evolves. There's a lot of speculation as we simply don't have all the facts/clarity needed to truly evaluate market impact.
Speculation can be dangerous as it invites panic and irrationality. I'm trying be objective in my outlook.