The Real Story Behind the Bridge Network Fallout: How Danny Oyekan Became the Target of a Smear Campaign

When a popular investigative media platform published an article claiming that Dubai-based entrepreneur Danny Oyekan “borrowed $40,000 from a friend and vanished,” it was clear something didn’t add up.

The piece, evidently sponsored by Samuel Eke, not only misrepresented basic facts but also appeared to be part of a larger, more sinister play: a cover-up for a failed startup riddled with financial mismanagement and internal sabotage.

Let’s set the record straight. Oyekan, founder of Blockfinex and Dan Ventures, was an investor in a blockchain startup called Bridge Network, not a borrower or debtor in any personal capacity. This accusation not only lacks context but also attempts to distort a legitimate business dispute into a false personal scandal.

Who Is Danny Oyekan?

Danny Oyekan is no anonymous to the blockchain ecosystem. He’s the founder of Blockfinex and Dan Ventures, with a decade-long track record in cryptocurrency, fintech, AI and early-stage investing across Africa and the Middle East. He was already building in Web3 before the average Nigerian had heard of Ethereum. His companies have employed Nigerians, invested in African talent, and pushed boundaries in digital finance.

He’s one of the best founders to have come out of the African Blockchain space in the last 10 years, and not a scammer as portrayed by the articles.

What Happened With the Bridge Network?

In April 2022, Oyekan, through his investment arm, Dan Ventures, backed a blockchain startup called Bridge Network, co-founded by Samuel Eke and Kimberly Adams. The startup had attracted some attention, even from heavyweights like FTX. But that promise quickly unravelled due to infighting and financial recklessness at the top.

According to internal sources and corroborated by TechCabal’s October 2023 report, the root of the conflict wasn’t investment returns; it was a power struggle between Eke and Adams, the company’s original CEO. By January 2023, the two founders had fallen out, leading to instability, mass staff exits, and a boardroom coup that saw Adams pushed out of the company she helped build.

Before she was abruptly removed, Adams had already approved a reimbursement sum that would have nearly covered the entire investment owed to Dan Ventures. But just one week after granting that approval, she was forced out. Importantly, as of today, Kimberly Adams remains the only legal shareholder of Bridge Network on record. Neither Eke nor his other cofounder appears in the company’s official documents.

So who’s running the show now? And where did the money go?

Follow the Money

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: after Adams’ exit, over $780,000 in investor funds, including capital from Dan Ventures, were funnelled through Bridge Network with little to no documentation. 

No audits. No board minutes. No investor disclosures. Nothing. Samuel Eke and his unnamed new cofounder (who remains deliberately low-profile) effectively seized control and bled the company dry. Instead of offering transparency or restitution, they launched a smoke-and-mirrors campaign to discredit their most vocal creditor: Danny Oyekan.

And that’s where the blog comes in.

The original defamatory article even refers to Eke as a “former Bridge cofounder,” carefully avoiding any mention of Adams, the real CEO who signed the term sheets and managed the investment relationship with Dan Ventures. That omission isn’t accidental; it’s part of the lie.

Bribes, Bloggers, and Blackmail

What followed was a series of attempts to publicly discredit Oyekan. According to sources close to the matter, digital forensics and blockchain analysis suggest that Samuel Eke paid a local blogger in cryptocurrency to amplify defamatory content online. These actions, orchestrated after efforts to hold the company accountable for missing funds, reflect a wider attempt to obscure the financial discrepancies within Bridge Network and redirect attention toward a false villain.

This is textbook distraction: accuse your creditor of fraud, hope the public forgets who ran off with the money.

Rather than engage in public mudslinging, Oyekan has chosen a lawful and transparent approach, submitting all relevant materials to legal counsel and regulatory authorities. No charges have been brought against him, and no formal police statements have indicated any wrongdoing on his part.

Putting the Record Straight

The claim that Oyekan “vanished” with borrowed funds is not only baseless, it’s a complete distortion of facts. Oyekan was never in a borrower-lender relationship with Eke. The transaction in question was tied to the operations of Bridge Network, a company that Eke helped mismanage and is now distancing himself from.

At the heart of this is a business deal gone wrong, not a case of personal fraud. And it is clear that the effort to blur those lines is part of a broader narrative war being fought by individuals seeking to avoid scrutiny for their actions.

Smear campaigns only work when the facts are hidden. Now that the truth is out, it’s clear: Danny Oyekan was not only misrepresented, he was targeted.

The real story is one of misplaced trust, boardroom betrayal, and two cofounders who, when the walls started closing in, tried to shift blame rather than take responsibility. And while Oyekan may never recover the full sum of his investment, what he has regained is more valuable: his name.

It’s time the public turned its attention to the real scandal here, the Bridge Network heist, and demanded accountability from the people who ran it into the ground.

Moving Forward

Danny Oyekan remains committed to innovation and investment across Africa’s blockchain ecosystem. His track record, spanning more than a decade in Web3 infrastructure and venture capital, speaks to a consistent focus on growth, transparency, and value creation.

“This has been an unfortunate distraction,” said a spokesperson for Dan Holdings. “But the facts speak for themselves. We stand by our founder and trust that the truth will continue to come out.”

As the crypto landscape matures, so too must the standards for journalism and public discourse. In times of tension, integrity matters more than ever. And in this case, the integrity lies firmly on the side of Danny Oyekan.

Read also: Eric Gugua’s “Beyond Convention” challenges norms in tech, finance, and personal growth