AB DAO
Summary
AB DAO (ticker: $AB) is a decentralized autonomous organization and blockchain ecosystem that emerged in early 2025 from the rebranding of the Newton Project (formerly $NEW), originally founded in 2018. The project attracted significant investigative scrutiny in April 2026 when a joint OCCRP and Guardian Australia investigation found that AB-affiliated entities promoted a Timor-Leste crypto resort project that involved multiple individuals subsequently sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury for alleged ties to the Prince Group, described by U.S. authorities as a multibillion-dollar online fraud syndicate. AB also announced a blockchain partnership with World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency project co-owned by Trump family members, in November 2025.
Connected Entities
1 entities · 10 linked investigationsTimeline(12 events)
2018-01-01
Newton Project founded with the goal of building a decentralized community economy.
BingX Academy / Gate Learn2025-02-10
Newton Project rebrands as AB; Newton DAO becomes AB DAO with $NEW token holders migrating to $AB.
CoinLive2025-06-01
AB DAO and AB Charity Foundation sign an MOU with AB Digital Technology Resort Lda to develop a blockchain theme resort in Dili, Timor-Leste.
The Block (press release)2025-07-01
Lin Xiaofan donates $500,000 to Timor-Leste President Ramos-Horta's charity. Ramos-Horta issues Lin a diplomatic passport, designating him special adviser for economic and commercial affairs.
OCCRP2025-10-01
Sui Chenggang meets World Liberty Financial executives including Donald Trump Jr. in Singapore.
OCCRP2025-10-01
U.S. Treasury sanctions Yang Jian, Yang Yanming (Kimi Yang), and Shih Ting-yu (Vivian Shih) for alleged ties to Prince Group CEO Chen Zhi and the Palau resort project.
OCCRP2025-11-01
AB announces partnership with World Liberty Financial, granting WLFI the right to deploy its USD1 stablecoin on the AB blockchain.
Binance Square / Decrypt2025-11-01
Timor-Leste resort MOU terminated. Three sanctioned individuals removed from AB Digital Technology Resort Lda shortly after U.S. sanctions announcement.
OCCRP2025-12-15
Zhao Chen (wife of alleged Prince Group 'second in command' Hu Xiaowei) divests her 38% stake in the Timor-Leste resort company.
OCCRP2026-02-01
OCCRP and Guardian Australia investigators visit the proposed Timor-Leste resort site and find an empty plot with shrubs — no construction activity.
The Cooldown / OCCRP2026-04-08
OCCRP and Guardian Australia publish joint investigation linking AB DAO's resort project to U.S.-sanctioned individuals with alleged ties to the Prince Group fraud syndicate.
OCCRPDecision Log
- hash: 7UHyNJ9sq2DLJWx1YJ6XoQtL5qWvsXF5LwHo7Xmaq6Kf
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain and source URLs are archived via the Internet Archive.
model: claude-sonnet-4-6
generated: 6/19/2026, 5:21:20 PM
last updated: 6/19/2026, 5:21:29 PM
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