On February 3, 2023, Flux, a new Web3 fund, was announced by Ryan Carson, a well-known Web3 builder who used to be the COO of Proof Collective. Carson declared the fund in a tweet that has since been deleted. In it, he said that he planned to get $10 million from 100 investors and that 21 spots had already been taken. Members of the NFT community, including those who were listed as investors, noticed right away that Carson’s announcement didn’t make sense.
Thus, Flux’s website required investors to contribute $160,000. If 100 people invested that much, Carson would raise $16 million—$6 million more than he claimed. The community claimed that 21 investors likely contributed less than the $160,000 minimum but would receive the same equity share as those who contributed more.
Multiple investors mentioned by Carson in the tweet took to Twitter to express their dissatisfaction with the manner in which he communicated their participation, stating that they had not committed the minimum investment amount. Due to the miscommunication, entities such as Gmoney have announced they will no longer invest in Flux.
Why it is important:
Web3 has an unfortunate reputation for shady dealings, scams, rug pulls, and widespread fraud, and the circumstances surrounding Carson’s announcement of Flux have raised eyebrows in the NFT space.
Ryan Carsons new project details his plan to raise $10m through 100 investors.
— GeeGazza (@Gee__Gazza) February 4, 2023
If you ignore the Partners, there are 21 names listed already. Hence why it seems like 21 spots are already gone from his fund.
One of the issues I have is the maths simply doesn't add up…pic.twitter.com/ZYf81TZK4S
During a several-hour-long AMA on Twitter on February 4, Carson responded to queries from the community about the whole situation, stating that verbal commitments from investors are common while fundraising and admitting that he could have expressed things more clearly.
“I assumed some things that I shouldn’t have,” Carson said in the AMA. “This is a common practice. People commit verbally or over text. I guess I could’ve slowed down the process and waited until all the term sheets were signed [to announce the investors]. I have nothing to hide. That is just the way it is.”
People in the community have given responses that range from negative to positive. Gmoney went on Twitter to talk about his role in Flux. He said that he had given $10,000 to the fund, but that he didn’t like how Carson made the announcement before all the money had been raised, so he is pulling out of the deal. Zeneca is one of Flux’s founding advisors. He tweeted about the situation, saying that he hadn’t talked about his involvement in the fund because it was small and that he hadn’t added Flux to his Zeneca Transparency page because it was “recency.”
Because I have been working hard on building my own project, my DD is not up to the same standards as it was when I was investing full time.
— gmoney.9dcc.eth (@gmoneyNFT) February 4, 2023
6/8
This isn’t the first time Carson is getting accused of being unethical
Carson, CEO and co-founder of online coding school Treehouse, announced in late August 2021 that its planned acquisition by technology firm Skillsoft had failed and that important cutbacks were likely. Treehouse fired most of its employees without benefits or severance hours later. Several Treehouse employees said the cuts and layoffs were poorly communicated or not communicated at all, citing an erratic management style that often resulted in major strategic changes on a whim.
gm everyone.
— Ryan Carson (@ryancarson) February 4, 2023
I woke up to a lot of messages about our announcement of Flux and our investors.
I’d like to lay it all out and then I’ll do a Twitter Space tomorrow and everyone is welcome to join and ask me any questions.
Carson’s past in the Web3 space is also controversial because of how he left the Moonbirds team and Proof Collective in April 2022. Carson left the group less than two weeks after Moonbirds was launched to start an NFT venture fund called 121G. Web3 enthusiasts were quick to point out the circumstances surrounding Carson’s abrupt exit, noting that he had amassed over 200 ETH worth of Moonbirds previous to his exit, prompting some to speculate about insider trading or even a forced exit from the team.
What comes next?
During the AMA, Carson emphasized that he is only working on Flux and doing his best to contribute to the NFT space.
It’s not clear what will happen to the fund and its investors in the future, but the controversy has stirred a larger conversation in the NFT ecosystem about transparency, fundraising, trust, and ethics that is likely to keep going around the community.
Content Source: nftnow.com
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