On January 26th, PANews reported that NEO founder Da Hongfei posted on the X platform, stating that Zhang Zhengwen had not previously mentioned the discussions between the two parties regarding the Binance investment. Neo invested in Binance in 2017, and although it has not yet received dividends or BNB distributions, this investment remains an important financial asset for the Neo Foundation and NGD, and is a community asset that should not be managed in a dictatorial manner. He stated that one of his goals is to resolve and realize the value of this investment within the next two years, allowing the funds to contribute to the Neo ecosystem. To achieve this, cooperation with Zhang Zhengwen is necessary, not confrontation. Da Hongfei also accused Zhang Zhengwen of defaming his character, threatening his personal safety, and attempting a hostile takeover, pushing Neo to a dangerous extreme and putting its assets at risk. He further stated that coercion through distorted facts is ineffective, and that Zhang Zhengwen has sufficient resources to do meaningful things for Neo and should no longer fight for personal control and dictatorial ambitions. He added that core developers should have been continuously adding features to the Neo mainnet for many years.

In response, Zhang Zhengwen told Da Hongfei to stop using Binance to grab attention, saying that no one likes to be used like that, and emphasized that the dialogue focused on Neo's internal governance and accountability, rather than external brand association or diverting attention.