Forbes 30 Under 30 alumnus Gokce Guven charged with fraud in US
Another alumnus of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list has been charged with fraud in the United States, adding to a growing list of high-profile cases involving young startup founders, media reports said.
According to TechCrunch, Gokce Guven, a 26-year-old Turkish national and founder of New York-based fintech startup Kalder, has been charged with multiple federal offences, including securities fraud, wire fraud, visa fraud and aggravated identity theft.
US prosecutors said the charges were filed last week and relate to Kalder’s seed funding round in April 2024. The allegations were announced by the US Department of Justice.
Founded in 2022, Kalder claimed to help companies create and monetise customer rewards programmes through affiliate partnerships.
Guven was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2025, which said the startup’s clients included chocolatier Godiva and the International Air Transport Association.
According to prosecutors, Guven raised around $7 million from more than a dozen investors by presenting false and misleading information in investor pitch materials.
The Department of Justice alleged that the pitch deck falsely claimed that 26 brands were actively using Kalder’s platform and that another 53 were enrolled in “live freemium” programmes, when several had only pilot arrangements or no formal agreements at all.
Prosecutors also alleged that the company overstated its financial performance, claiming Kalder’s revenue had grown consistently to reach $1.2 million in annual recurring revenue by March 2024.
The government said Guven maintained two sets of financial records, including one with inflated figures shown to investors, in order to conceal the company’s true financial position.
In addition, the Department of Justice alleged that Guven used false statements and forged documents to obtain a US visa reserved for individuals of “extraordinary ability”.
The case adds to a series of legal troubles involving Forbes 30 Under 30 alumni, including Sam Bankman-Fried, Charlie Javice and Martin Shkreli, who have faced fraud-related charges in recent years.
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