Verify a decision

{"actor":"system:backfill","investigation_id":"0c4a0d4e-3371-47ee-9292-5c183328c9e2","kind":"publish","page_slug":"gala-games","published_at":"2026-05-30T18:32:30.980Z","sequence_num":1,"snapshot":{"content_type":"investigation","entity_name":"Gala Games","sections":[{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"https://www.theblock.co/post/248897/gala-games-ceo-sues-co-founder-alleging-130-million-theft-pattern-of-deception","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://naavik.co/digest/gala-games/","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/gala/","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://news.gala.com/galachain/","type":"other","url":""}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"https://www.theblock.co/post/248897/gala-games-ceo-sues-co-founder-alleging-130-million-theft-pattern-of-deception","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://decrypt.co/154848/gala-games-co-founders-sue-each-other-alleging-corporate-waste-130-million-theft","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://cointelegraph.com/news/gala-games-founders-sue-court-token-theft-corporate-waste","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-d-uta/116514899.html","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://blockworks.com/news/gala-games-founders-legal-battle","type":"other","url":""}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"https://decrypt.co/231528/gala-games-240-million-worth-tokens-swiped-exploit","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://beincrypto.com/gala-games-exploit-hacker-mints-214-million/","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://www.halborn.com/blog/post/explained-the-gala-games-hack-may-2024","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://news.gala.com/gala-games/incident-report-unauthorized-token-minting-blockchain-game-partners-inc/","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://www.coindesk.com/business/2024/05/20/gaming-token-gala-drops-amid-suspect-200m-transfer","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://cryptonews.com/news/gala-games-hit-by-23-million-token-exploit-due-to-messed-up-internal-controls/","type":"other","url":""}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"https://cointelegraph.com/news/gala-games-founders-sue-court-token-theft-corporate-waste","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://www.theblock.co/post/248897/gala-games-ceo-sues-co-founder-alleging-130-million-theft-pattern-of-deception","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://iq.wiki/wiki/wright-thurston","type":"other","url":""}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"https://medium.com/@sharomiumar/an-in-depth-economic-analysis-on-gala-tokenomics-bde032b89149","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://naavik.co/digest/gala-games/","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/gala/","type":"other","url":""}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"https://www.halborn.com/blog/post/explained-the-gala-games-hack-may-2024","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://decrypt.co/154848/gala-games-co-founders-sue-each-other-alleging-corporate-waste-130-million-theft","type":"other","url":""},{"credibility":3,"name":"https://blockworks.com/news/gala-games-founders-legal-battle","type":"other","url":""}]}],"sources_used":[],"summary":"Gala Games is a blockchain gaming platform founded in 2019 by Eric Schiermeyer (co-founder of Zynga) and Wright Thurston, issuing the GALA utility and governance token. The company has been beset by a high-profile inter-founder legal dispute alleging $130 million in token theft, a May 2024 smart contract exploit in which 5 billion GALA tokens worth approximately $200–240 million were minted by a compromised admin wallet, and co-founder Wright Thurston's prior SEC lawsuit over an unrelated $18 million unregistered securities offering. These compounding governance failures, security incidents, and legal controversies place the platform among the more heavily scrutinized projects in the blockchain gaming sector.","timeline":[{"date":"2019-01-01","event":"Gala Games (Blockchain Game Partners, Inc.) founded by Eric Schiermeyer, Wright Thurston, and Michael McCarthy.","source":""},{"date":"2020-09-01","event":"GALA token launches, distributed via Founder's Node rewards rather than an ICO.","source":""},{"date":"2021-02-01","event":"Alleged theft: Thurston allegedly moves 8.6 billion GALA tokens from company wallet into 43 separate wallets, per Schiermeyer's 2023 lawsuit.","source":""},{"date":"2021-11-26","event":"GALA token reaches all-time high of approximately $0.82, giving the project a multi-billion dollar market capitalization.","source":""},{"date":"2022-07-01","event":"GALA daily emissions exceed 8.5 million tokens; critics raise concerns about inflationary supply pressure.","source":""},{"date":"2022-09-01","event":"Alleged sale activity begins: Thurston allegedly begins selling GALA through centralized exchanges across a complex transaction chain, per Schiermeyer's lawsuit.","source":""},{"date":"2023-03-01","event":"SEC files suit against Wright Thurston and Green United LLC alleging fraudulent sale of $18 million in unregistered securities related to the GREEN token.","source":""},{"date":"2023-05-15","event":"Gala Games burns approximately 20.9 billion GALA tokens (estimated $660 million) in a public supply-reduction event.","source":""},{"date":"2023-08-31","event":"Eric Schiermeyer files shareholder-derivative lawsuit against Wright Thurston in Utah District Court, alleging $130 million in GALA token theft. Thurston simultaneously files counter-lawsuit against Schiermeyer alleging corporate waste and seeking $750 million in damages.","source":""},{"date":"2024-05-17","event":"President of Blockchain and several other Gala Games team members depart the organization, three days before the subsequent exploit.","source":""},{"date":"2024-05-20","event":"A compromised admin minter wallet on the Ethereum GALA contract is used to mint 5 billion GALA tokens worth approximately $200–240 million. Approximately 599 million tokens are sold via Uniswap for roughly 5,913 ETH before the attacker's address is blocklisted. GALA price falls 15–20% within an hour.","source":""},{"date":"2024-05-22","event":"The exploiter returns approximately 5,912 ETH to Gala Games. The company refers the matter to the FBI and U.S. Department of Justice.","source":""},{"date":"2024-05-31","event":"Gala Games publishes official incident report confirming all 5 billion unauthorized tokens burned via governance vote; company details post-incident security upgrades including Okta SAML and AWS permission redesign.","source":""},{"date":"2026-04-30","event":"Gala Games announces a tokenomics model upgrade introducing protocol-level fee burning and ecosystem distribution on GalaChain.","source":""}]},"v":1}