Investors Ask: What Does Haseeb Qureshi's Scandal Mean for Dragonfly?
Earlier this week, Dragonfly Capital Managing Partner Haseeb Qureshi (known on X as @hosseeb ) shared a post reflecting on the firm's early days. Not long after, a Dragonfly cofounder publicly pushed back , disputing Haseeb Qureshi's Scandal characterization of the company's origins. The cofounder stated that Dragonfly had already been established for over a year before Qureshi joined and had led multiple notable investments prior to his arrival. He also emphasized the founding partners' prior track records in crypto and venture, contrasting that history with Qureshi’s earlier poker career. That reference prompted renewed scrutiny of Qureshi's background in professional poker—specifically, an episode that had drawn controversy years before his entry into cryptocurrency market . The Poker Episode Qureshi's early career has been documented in various outlets, including reporting by the Austin American-Statesman. According to that coverage, he admitted to using another person's identification to access online platforms as a teenager.
He later became involved in a broader scandal connected to online poker activities. Accounts from the time describe shifting statements about his involvement—initial denials followed by later acknowledgments. Allegations included backing and coaching another player, as well as transferring funds by deliberately losing games instead of following required platform procedures. One professional player quoted in coverage of the matter described the situation as a "web of lies," alleging that Qureshi admitted to misconduct only after being confronted with evidence. Critics argued that his actions, if left unchecked, could have cost other players significant sums. Some of the original forum posts and poker databases discussing the incident have since been removed. Public Reflections and Transition to Crypto In subsequent years, Qureshi has written openly about his past and described the poker episode as a formative experience. However, details of the story vary across sources, and some accounts differ in emphasis and interpretation. After leaving professional poker, Qureshi transitioned into cryptocurrency and venture capital. He is now a managing partner at Dragonfly Capital, which manages approximately $650 million in assets. Despite his current prominence in crypto investing, not everyone in the industry is familiar with his earlier history. Some, however, say it has influenced their decisions. A former employee of blockchain startup Eclipse Labs, speaking anonymously due to ongoing industry relationships, said their team hesitated to work with Dragonfly specifically because of Qureshi's involvement. According to the source, they offered the firm allocation only at a higher valuation than other investors—though they accepted angel investments from other Dragonfly partners whom they personally trusted. Broader Industry Discussions Some users took to confirming the veracity of the information via Grok, a truth-seeking large language model: "Yes, there was a 2011 poker scandal called the Girah Scandal involving Haseeb Qureshi (then pro player "DogIsHead"). He mentored/backed teen prodigy… who cheated via multi-accounting, Skype hole-card sharing, and scamming players out of ~$30k+. Haseeb admitted knowing details, logging into Girah's account (Toshisan), covering for him initially, and chip-dumping. He
faced backlash, publicly confessed in a 7k-word post, helped reimburse victims with Jungleman, and quit at 21. This was pre-crypto/Dragonfly (he joined years later as managing partner). Details in his blog and 2+2 forums." A user on X by the username @cryptovcdylan lamented: "If [this] person now runs one of the few crypto finds that has money…may leave the industry"
