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After scaling Nexus International to $1.2 billion in annual revenue, Gurhan Kiziloz is setting his sights on blockchain with BlockDAG.
Summary
- BlockDAG replaces sequential block processing with a parallel Directed Acyclic Graph model, delivering high throughput while maintaining Proof-of-Work security and Ethereum compatibility.
- Fully self-funded and tightly managed, the project reflects Kiziloz’s hands-on approach, rapid restructuring, strict accountability, and a development roadmap that has stayed on schedule.
- BlockDAG enters a fiercely competitive landscape dominated by Ethereum and Solana, betting that superior execution, decentralization, and architecture can overcome entrenched network effects.
Gurhan Kiziloz has never been content with a single victory. After building Nexus International into a record $1.2 billion in revenue for 2025, he turned his attention to an industry that has humbled far more founders than it has enriched. Blockchain was the next frontier. BlockDAG was his entry point. The targets were clear from the start: Ethereum and Solana, the two networks that have defined what blockchain can do and how fast it can do it.
BlockDAG’s architecture represents a departure from the sequential processing that limits traditional blockchains. Where Ethereum and Bitcoin add blocks one after another in a single chain, BlockDAG employs a Directed Acyclic Graph structure that processes transactions in parallel. The throughput gains are substantial, thousands of transactions per second rather than dozens. But speed alone would not distinguish BlockDAG in a market where Solana has already staked that claim. The differentiation lies in what Kiziloz believes are Solana’s weaknesses.
Solana achieves its performance through validator requirements that critics argue concentrate power among well-funded operators. Network outages have interrupted service during periods of peak demand. The Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism, while energy-efficient, raises questions about long-term decentralization. BlockDAG retains Proof-of-Work, distributing security across a broader base. It offers compatibility with Ethereum’s smart contract ecosystem, allowing developers to migrate applications without rebuilding them from scratch. The proposition is a blockchain that matches Solana’s speed while addressing its vulnerabilities.
Getting BlockDAG to this point required the same operational intensity Kiziloz applied to gaming. He funded development himself, avoiding the venture capital dependencies that constrain many blockchain projects. When progress stalled, he intervened directly. The CEO was removed. Staff who could not maintain the pace Kiziloz demanded were let go. The restructuring was neither gradual nor gentle. It was a correction executed with the precision of someone who had done similar things before.
This willingness to make uncomfortable decisions quickly is central to how Kiziloz operates. In gaming, it allowed Nexus to outmanoeuvre competitors burdened by slower governance structures. In blockchain, it has produced a development timeline that has surprised observers accustomed to projects that move at the speed of consensus. BlockDAG’s roadmap has not slipped. Features have shipped on schedule. The organization operates as an extension of its founder’s expectations.
The blockchain industry is not short on ambitious projects claiming to solve problems that Ethereum and Solana have not. Most fail. The technology proves more difficult than anticipated, or the team cannot execute, or the market simply does not adopt the alternative. Kiziloz is aware of these risks. He is also aware that his track record distinguishes him from founders whose ambitions exceed their capabilities. He has built at billion-dollar scale before. He has competed against entrenched operators and taken meaningful market share. He has done it with his own capital, on his own terms.
Ethereum is not standing still. Its layer-2 ecosystem continues to expand, offering scaling solutions that address throughput limitations without abandoning the base layer’s security. Solana’s developer community remains active, and the network’s issues have not prevented continued adoption. BlockDAG enters a competitive environment where the incumbents have resources, brand recognition, and years of accumulated network effects. The challenge is substantial.
Kiziloz appears to welcome it. He has spoken about entering markets to dominate rather than participate, and there is nothing in his history to suggest that is empty rhetoric. The $200 million he invested in Spartans.com was a bet against Bet365 and Stake. That bet is paying off. BlockDAG is a similar wager, a belief that execution and architecture can overcome incumbency and scale.
The blockchain industry will test that belief thoroughly. Development must continue without interruption. Developers must be convinced to build on a new platform. Users must choose BlockDAG over alternatives with established track records. None of this is guaranteed. But Kiziloz has navigated uncertainty before, and he has emerged with results that silenced those who doubted him.
BlockDAG is now part of a portfolio that spans gaming and blockchain, built by a founder who has demonstrated he can compete at the highest levels. The targets are set. The technology is live. The leadership is uncompromising. What remains is execution, and if there is one thing Gurhan Kiziloz has proven, it is that he knows how to execute.
This article was prepared in collaboration with BlockDAG. It does not constitute investment advice.
