Former Hack VC partner Hsin-Ju rejects the settlement and will make evidence public, bringing renewed attention to workplace culture in crypto VC.

Written by: Nicky, Foresight News

On the morning of August 24, former Hack VC partner and platform head Hsin-Ju Chuang posted on X platform, announcing her rejection of the settlement proposal from the company and her decision to make all the evidence she collected during her time at Hack VC public on August 26.

Hack VC later made a brief response, stating that they are aware of the related post and expressed deep concern for Hsin-Ju's health, but that there are significant differences in understanding of the incident, and due to privacy considerations, they will not discuss the details publicly for now.

Hsin-Ju's public accusations focus on her working conditions during her employment and the handling of her insurance after leaving. According to her description, last year, due to medical emergencies, including diagnosed Graves' disease, hyperthyroidism, and severe insomnia, she was still required to continue working under high intensity, working 13 to 14 hours a day, 6 days a week, and often getting less than 4 hours of sleep.

For the reasons stated above, Hsin-Ju claimed she made multiple requests to resign but was refused and threatened that if she left before the events related to the Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) were completed, she would be blacklisted in the industry. According to her tweet, after this situation persisted for nearly a month, she attempted to commit suicide. Afterwards, she communicated in writing to Hack VC that she had no intention of suing, only asking not to face retaliation or defamation. However, she claimed that just one month after her suicide attempt, there were delays in her COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) health insurance handling, which continued for nearly four months until she hired a lawyer to intervene and resolve the issue.

It was during this legal negotiation process that the settlement proposal was put forward, but she ultimately chose to forgo it. Hsin-Ju stated that she was unwilling to exchange a signed confidentiality clause for settlement money, as this would mean trading silence for money. She revealed that she had fired her proxy lawyer the day before and decided to speak out without needing the money. This choice is not logically common; in most disputes, involved parties seek to maximize benefits with lawyer assistance rather than actively give up, but her explanation is that after nearly a year of negotiation, she realized she could not accept the result of "taking money to be quiet."

In response to Hack VC's explanation for not publicly discussing details on the grounds of privacy, Hsin-Ju further stated that she believes the real reason is not privacy, but rather Hack VC's unwillingness to establish a fixed statement early on about the incident to avoid contradictions with her subsequently public written evidence.

Public records show that Hsin-Ju entered the crypto field in 2017, serving as head of growth on the early teams of Stellar and Solana, after which she founded Dystopia Labs, focusing on developing the developer ecosystem and organizing Web3 events. In 2024, she joined Fhenix as head of growth and officially became a partner and platform head at Hack VC in March 2025. She emphasized that during her time at Hack VC, she received a salary increase to $300,000, a bonus, and commitments for additional benefits, stating that her lawsuit was not initiated for economic motives but rather due to substantial harm she suffered that led her to speak out.

Hack VC holds a certain status in the crypto venture capital field. The institution is headquartered in Palo Alto, California, and regulatory documents indicate its assets under management are approximately $823 million. Its investment portfolio includes well-known Web3 projects like Sui, EigenLayer, Berachain, Morpho, and Stable, and it has realized exits in acquisitions such as Rail and Vertex. According to the Preqin database and LinkedIn official page, its fixed core staff and investment team comprise about 15 people, and the total registered/associated employee count is in the range of 11-50.

The other key figures in this incident are Hack VC co-founder and managing partner Alexander Pack, and partner, general counsel, and chief operating officer Daniel Bulaevsky. Alexander Pack previously co-founded Dragonfly Capital and served as the first managing partner; he has also managed Web3 investments at Bain Capital Ventures, accumulating a rich network and influence in the industry.

Daniel Bulaevsky also has a solid professional background, having worked as a lawyer at the prestigious New York law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, where he participated in cross-border mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, and securities law matters. He later engaged in leveraged finance at JPMorgan and joined Hack VC after handling legal, financial, and overall operations. Their core positions within the institution mean Hsin-Ju’s accusations directly point to the governance responsibilities of Hack VC’s decision-makers.

Hsin-Ju explicitly mentioned both individuals in her post, stating she had been told that Alexander Pack had known most managing partners of VC firms for nearly a decade and had the ability to implement an industry-wide ban against her. For someone who has worked in the crypto field for nine years, relying heavily on connections and reputation for opportunities, the potential pressure from these two industry veterans undoubtedly exacerbates her situation's uncertainty. Daniel Bulaevsky’s role as general counsel also includes the processes of handling labor disputes and insurance issues, which Hsin-Ju has included in her accusations.

If the evidence Hsin-Ju publicly releases can substantiate her claims, Hack VC may face multiple layers of legal risks.

Under California law, employers have a strict obligation to provide reasonable accommodations to employees. Refusing to adjust work intensity after becoming aware, preventing employees from leaving for medical reasons, or exerting retaliatory threats may constitute discrimination, failure to engage in interactive processes, or retaliatory actions. The delay in the COBRA insurance handling for nearly four months may also violate federal notice and management obligations. Furthermore, if the related threats result in serious mental harm, it could also involve intentional infliction of emotional distress and other tort liabilities. However, the final determination of these risks depends on the strength of the evidence, her legal classification as an employee, and specific communication records, with significant discrepancies in facts between both parties currently.

In the community, some practitioners have publicly expressed support for Hsin-Ju. Michael Feng, co-founder of Hummingbot, stated that he had collaborated with Hsin-Ju multiple times to organize meetings and believes she has always been diligent, ethical, and responsible, asserting that if the evidence shows leadership did not prioritize employee health over business interests, all LPs should redeem. Voices from the Chinese-speaking community also suggest that although the workload is extreme and health is compromised, a salary of about $300,000 per year plus bonuses could still be an attractive offer for accepting similar conditions. This perspective reflects the prevalent "high salary for high pressure" culture in the crypto industry from another angle.

Hsin-Ju's choice to make evidence public on August 26 means the incident will shift from personal narrative to a phase that can be externally verified. She noted that she realizes that facing an institution managing hundreds of millions of dollars in assets, the outcome could be extremely unfavorable for her personally, but she is still unwilling to trade silence for settlement money.

For Hack VC, regardless of the legal outcome, this public dispute has already begun to affect its reputation in the industry. For the broader crypto practitioners, this incident provides an opportunity to re-examine workplace governance, power boundaries, and individual protection.