- Hana told DL News how a work meeting turned into a nightmare.
- CCTV footage showed a senior crypto exec spiking her cocktail.
- The episode casts a harsh light on crypto's gender equality problem.
In late October, Hana arrived at a brightly-lit bar in Hong Kong.
The 27-year-old, who was in town from Tokyo to try to land a job in the crypto industry, sat down with a partner at DWF Labs, one of the industry’s higher-powered investment and market-making firms.
After she and the partner ordered drinks, Hana briefly went to the bathroom. Hana told DL News the man was Eugene Ng.
The partner took something out of his pocket and tipped it into her cocktail glass, according to security camera footage posted online. When Hana came back from the bathroom she drank from the cocktail.
On Tuesday, Hana, who declined to provide her real name to protect her privacy, posted a still from the footage on X.
“I never thought I’d personally experience something like this,” she wrote. “On the evening of October 24th, I was drugged by a partner at @DWFLabs.”
Predatory behaviour
Hana’s post went viral and received more than 6 million views. Women in crypto — and some men — flooded Hana with messages of their own experiences of harassment.
“Some of those crypto bros embody the most predatory aspects of both tech and finance cultures, treating women they see as ‘huntable’ with unpredictable crimes,” one prominent crypto investor posted on X.
Hana managed to escape her would-be attacker and reported the incident to the Hong Kong police.
‘I’ve had people tell me, ‘Oh, this is just crypto, you shouldn’t be so conservative.’
— Hana
While DWF Labs did not publicly identify the partner, the firm acted quickly.
“While the matter is under investigation, DWF Labs has decided to dismiss the said partner from management and operational roles effective immediately,” the crypto firm posted on Tuesday. Eugene Ng’s profile was removed from DWF Labs’ website.
Ng’s X account went private, and his LinkedIn profile appeared to have been deleted. Ng did not respond to a request for comment from DL News.
On Friday, Andrei Grachev, managing director for DWF Labs, conceded on X that the partner was Ng and said he and his team were considering “further legal actions against Eugene.”
Grachev didn’t respond to a message on X asking for further comment.
For Hana, it’s vital that what happened to her is not dismissed as just another isolated incident.
She wants to raise awareness about the culture of harassment that plagues women in finance, tech, and crypto.
“Ever since I started to look into a job opportunity in this industry, or just getting to know people in this space, I’ve met people, creepy people, a lot of them,” Hana said.
Cultures of sexism
Like Wall Street and Silicon Valley, the crypto industry has a gender equality problem.
The 17 richest crypto billionaires are all men, according to a recent tally from Forbes.
Men outnumbered women speakers almost nine to one at the Bitcoin 2024 conference, according to data previously compiled by DL News.
And a recent report from Association for Women in Cryptocurrency found that 82% of approximately 400 women surveyed believe the industry is not free from harassment.
Numbers vary on the proportion of women who experience sexual harassment in the workplace, but it’s clear the problem is pervasive. Hana is no exception.
Networking
Earlier this year, Hana decided to find a job in the industry. So, she attended conferences.
During her attempts to network, some men unexpectedly brought up sex. When she expressed her discomfort, they laughed off her concerns, she said.
“I’ve had people tell me, ‘Oh, this is just crypto, you shouldn’t be so conservative,’” she said.
Some have even told her that sex is “another way to know each other better,” she added.
‘My ultimate goal for everything I’ve done, it’s to just raise awareness.’
— Hana
It was at one of these conferences in Hong Kong where she met Ng. They kept in touch, so when she returned to the city on October 24, it was natural to meet up for drinks.
After Ng allegedly spiked her cocktail, a server rushed over to warn Hana that other drinkers had seen him do it.
That was only after she had sipped from her cocktail. Head spinning, she exited the bar and tried to get an Uber, to no avail. Ng stayed close to her, propping her up as she struggled to find her balance, she said.
Hana finally managed to escape from Ng in a taxi.
Fear of retaliation
Even as Hana decided to go public with her harrowing ordeal, she feared some form of retaliation from Ng, she said. Steeling herself, she drafted her post.
Hana said she’s overwhelmed and grateful for the support she’s found online.
“My ultimate goal for everything I’ve done, it’s to just raise awareness,” she said.
In a way, she said, she’s been given an opportunity.
Now she’s left turning over the “what if” scenarios in her mind.
What if the cocktail server had not warned her about the spiked drink?
What if Ng had gotten her into a cab?
What if she’d woken up in a strange hotel room?
Hana told DL News that she may have been too afraid of the consequences to report an assault.
“Probably, I would just shut up and then nothing would happen to these disgusting people,” she said.
“I believe I have to do this because I’m lucky. I’m the lucky one.”
Joanna Wright is DL News’ regulatory correspondent. Contact her at joanna@dlnews.com. Ben Weiss is DL News’ Dubai-based correspondent. Reach out to him at bweiss@dlnews.com.
Update, November 4: Added that Grachev said the DWF Labs partner who was dismissed was Eugene Ng and that Grachev did not respond to a request for comment on X.