DWF Labs Cuts Ties With Partner Eugene Ng After Drugging Allegation

A networking meeting in Hong Kong that was supposed to center on career opportunities has instead become one of the more disturbing stories to surface from the crypto industry this year.

The account comes from Hana, a venture capitalist who had recently turned her attention to Web3. She says she went into the meet-up expecting a professional conversation with Eugene Ng, a founding partner at market maker DWF Labs, about a potential role — one she says was pitched to her as "a perfect fit" given her move from a Web2 background into Web3.

According to the version of events Hana later posted on X, the night of October 24th took a turn after she briefly stepped away from the table. When she returned, she says a waitress who had noticed suspicious behavior alerted her to what appeared to be a covert attempt to drug her drink. Hana says she stayed composed enough to collect evidence, including CCTV footage she says shows Ng spiking her drink on more than one occasion. She also wrote that Ng tried to lure her back to his hotel suite by dangling promises of insider information, or "alpha."

"The confidence in his behavior suggested it wasn't his first attempt; this felt like a setup," she wrote, suggesting there may be other people who had similar experiences with him.

DWF Labs responded by quietly pulling Ng's profile from its public team page, and the incident was subsequently covered by Chainwire. The firm later put out a statement confirming Ng's removal from all roles, saying: "While the matter is under investigation, we are committed to upholding the highest ethical standards."

Ng also held a position at OpenEden, a separate firm, which issued its own statement suspending him: "As a platform dedicated to trust and integrity, we're dismayed by these allegations."

Both companies moved quickly once the allegations became public, though it remains an open question whether that speed reflects genuine accountability or an effort to limit reputational fallout while the matter is still being investigated.

The story lands amid a broader pattern of powerful figures across industries facing overdue scrutiny for alleged predatory conduct — from the lawsuits filed against Sean "Diddy" Combs to the arrest of former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries. Observers of the crypto industry note that an ecosystem built on ideals of transparency and openness has no clearer channels than any other for victims to report misconduct safely, and that this case may add pressure for the space to build them.