Greenfield Files Swiss Complaint Over Safe Foundation Board
Safe backer Greenfield Capital went public on 4 October 2026 with a complaint to Swiss regulators, citing a fall in Safe assets from $66B to $30B.
Greenfield Capital, an early investor in the Safe multisig wallet project, said on Sunday, 4 October 2026, that it has filed a supervisory complaint with Switzerland's Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations (ESA) about the board of the Safe Ecosystem Foundation. In an open letter posted at 11:01 UTC (16:31 IST), it asked for board member Stefan George to be replaced and for independent directors to be added.
Key takeaways
- Greenfield filed the complaint during the week and published its reasons on the Safe community forum on 4 October 2026, signed by founding partner Jascha Samadi.
- Greenfield says the value held in Safe accounts fell from $66 billion in January 2024 to about $30 billion in August 2026, while total DeFi deposits grew about 40%.
- Safe raised about $93.5 million in 2022. Greenfield, citing the Foundation's May 2026 MiCA disclosures, says about $60 million has been spent and about $34 million is left in cash.
- The letter alleges that after the February 2025 Bybit hack, Gnosis co-founders pressed Safe's other board members to give up SAFE tokens. These are allegations and have not been tested.
- Greenfield says the complaint is not a lawsuit or a takeover attempt. Safe accounts stay under their own signers' control.
What Greenfield Capital's complaint says
Greenfield Capital's complaint targets the Safe Ecosystem Foundation's board, which now has three members: Lukas Schor, Stefan George and Richard Meissner. Greenfield has backed Safe since the 2022 funding round that came with its spin-off from Gnosis, and says it has never sold a SAFE token. It argues that George, a Gnosis co-founder, has a conflict of interest because Gnosis built wallet products that competed with Safe{Wallet}.
The letter says the Foundation's deed requires at least three board members, yet it had only two between September 2025 and April 2026. The vacancy went to Meissner, a Safe co-founder who co-ran the company that operated the main Safe{Wallet} app until October 2025. Greenfield objects to that choice. It also calls the advisory Strategy Commission, set up in June 2026, too weak because it has no power over the board.
The most serious claim concerns the weeks after the Bybit hack of February 2025, in which about $1.5 billion was stolen after the developer environment behind Safe{Wallet} was compromised. Greenfield alleges that George and fellow Gnosis co-founder Martin Köppelmann demanded that Safe's other board members and co-founders give up a large share of their SAFE tokens, and threatened that Gnosis would otherwise sell its roughly 10% SAFE stake. Greenfield says the tokens were redistributed. Neither the Foundation's board nor Gnosis had replied on the forum thread by 5 October, though a former Gnosis employee posted in George's defence.
Safe's numbers in Greenfield's letter
Safe's numbers below come from Greenfield's letter of 4 October 2026, which cites the Foundation's own reports. Rupee figures use ₹96.40 to the dollar.
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Raised in 2022 | About $93.5 million (about ₹901 crore) |
| Spent by May 2026 | About $60 million; about $34 million left in cash |
| SAFE token since 2022 | Down more than 95% |
| Value in Safe accounts | $66 billion (January 2024) to about $30 billion (August 2026) |
| Stablecoins in Safes on Ethereum | $5.9 billion to $6.6 billion, up 11%, while total stablecoin supply rose about 135% |
| Safe's share of all USDC | 12.8% down to 2.5% |
| Q2 2026 revenue | $1.98 million, about $8 million a year |
Why the Safe dispute matters for Indian investors
The Safe dispute matters because Safe is one of the most widely used multisig wallets, holding about $30 billion as of August 2026 on Greenfield's figures. Safe accounts are self-custody smart contracts run by their owners' keys, so a board fight in Switzerland does not by itself put funds in them at risk. The real dangers sit with keys and signing screens. On the same Sunday, a lending vault on Base controlled by a 3-of-7 Safe lost about $6 million after its signers approved an attacker's contract. Our guide on how crypto hacks happen explains the common routes.
If you use a multisig for a business or family treasury, check every transaction on a hardware device before signing; our page on hot and cold wallets covers the basics. Gnosis's own token, GNO, closed Sunday at $120.45, up 1.5%; its live price of ₹11,443 is on our Gnosis price in INR page. Any profit on such tokens is taxed in India at a flat 30% plus 4% cess, with 1% TDS on transfers, as our crypto tax guide explains. Our report on September's crypto hacks puts the Bybit case in context.
What to watch next
The Safe complaint now rests with the Swiss supervisor, and several points remain open as of 5 October 2026.
- The ESA: whether it opens an examination and orders any changes. No timeline has been given.
- A reply: whether the Foundation board, George or Gnosis answer the allegations in public.
- The board: whether independent members are added, as Greenfield asks.
FAQ
What is Greenfield Capital's complaint against Safe?
Greenfield Capital filed a supervisory complaint with Switzerland's ESA about the Safe Ecosystem Foundation's board and published it on 4 October 2026. It wants Stefan George replaced and independent board members added.
Are funds in Safe wallets at risk because of this dispute?
No. The complaint concerns the Foundation's board, not Safe's smart contracts, which are controlled by each account's own signers. The bigger risks for Safe users are stolen keys and misleading signing screens.
What is the ESA in Switzerland?
The ESA is the Swiss Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations, which oversees Swiss foundations of national or international significance. It can examine how a foundation is governed and order corrective measures where needed.
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