Nick van Gorsel declares personal wealth of €800 million in Curaçao, amid scrutiny

Nick van Gorsel declared a personal wealth of €800 million in 2024 in documentation submitted to the regulatory authority in Curaçao, and appears alongside American Nicholas Beugg as the ultimate beneficial owner of Prolific Trade N.V., the company linked to Blaze.com. This indication is found in documents to which, according to Follow the Money (FTM), access was obtained following the leak from the Curaçao Gaming Authority in late 2025.

What does the Curaçao documentation say about Nick van Gorsel?

The records of the Prolific Trade N.V. dossier cited by FTM list Van Gorsel and Nicholas Beugg as the two ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) of the company operating Blaze.com. In this same dossier, Van Gorsel is said to have declared a wealth of €800 million and Beugg €500 million, according to FTM's report. These figures come from self-declarations submitted to the Curaçao regulator in 2024.

The UBO status is significant because it provides a regulator visibility into who exerts economic and voting control in a company. However, mere mention as a UBO does not specify the distribution of shares, profit participation, or voting rights between the two individuals named. The public documentation available does not contain a breakdown that shows how much of the declared amount of €800 million corresponds to shares, cash, real estate, or other assets, nor what liabilities may exist.

Public trajectory: from early traces to visibility in Brazil

FTM places Van Gorsel's known biographical origin in Bergen op Zoom (Netherlands), born in 1996. There is little verifiable information regarding his youth, education, or early businesses. An early trace cited in the investigation is a possible domain registration linked to gaming in 2015, which only indicates interest in a domain and does not confirm the existence of an active operation at that time.

The clearest public association arrives in 2023 when Santos FC announced a sponsorship alliance and cited Van Gorsel as the co-founder of the Blaze brand. NR Sports, the group surrounding footballer Neymar, mentioned Van Gorsel as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Blaze.com in the communication announcing the collaboration. These appointments are featured in promotional material and communications from business partners.

Blaze in Brazil: local licensing and regulatory repercussions

The Ministry of Finance of Brazil lists Foggo Entertainment Ltda. as the license holder for the Blaze and Jonbet brands in the country. This registration explains why the brand operates in Brazil under local ownership; a Curaçao license alone does not permit regulated operations in Brazil. The existence of Foggo on the official list is documentary evidence regarding the local operating avenue, and does not provide direct proof of Van Gorsel's personal involvement in that company.

Blaze's visibility in Brazil has been driven by sponsorship deals with football clubs, campaigns with influencers, and the association with Neymar. This tactic placed the brand in front of mass audiences and also attracted scrutiny regarding advertising and player protection.

Complaints, proceedings, and numbers cited by Brazilian authorities

Blaze's growth campaign coincided with a significant volume of player complaints in Brazil regarding alleged account blocking and difficulties in payments. In June 2026, the Public Ministry of the Federal District opened a civil investigation into possible irregularities related to Blaze, citing an analysis of over 42,000 reported complaints. This number refers to investigated reports and not proven infractions.

Additionally, in July 2026, a civil action was initiated regarding how Blaze and influencer Virgínia Fonseca promoted online betting; the Public Ministry argued that certain messages could create the impression that gambling provided easy or guaranteed winnings. A judge imposed provisional limitations on advertising that contravenes the criteria set by the authority, while the final resolution of the case remains undetermined.

The documents indicate names and declared figures, but do not replace an independent audit of the wealth or judicial decisions regarding business conduct, according to the public analysis that has circulated about the dossier.

Source of the leak and scope of available evidence

The documents were made public following the breach of the Curaçao Gaming Authority's system attributed to the investigative group Casino Secrets and disclosed by cybersecurity researcher Lilith Wittmann in late 2025. FTM examined ownership declarations, evaluations of license applications, and other paperwork from the dossier. Gambling Club did not directly consult the hacked dossier of Prolific Trade; it attributes the data extraction to FTM.

The leaked information allows for identifying names and figures that the individuals themselves declared to a regulator, but does not replace external verification regarding the actual composition of wealth nor clarifies how rights are distributed within the overall corporate structure.

What questions remain open regarding Van Gorsel and Blaze?

Public evidence confirms three concrete facts: Van Gorsel's self-declaration of €800 million in 2024; the appearance of Van Gorsel and Nicholas Beugg as UBOs of Prolific Trade N.V. in Curaçao documents cited by FTM; and the registration of Foggo Entertainment Ltda. in Brazil as the holder of the Blaze and Jonbet brands. What is not publicly documented is:

• the detailed composition of Van Gorsel's wealth;

• the precise distribution of ownership and rights among the UBOs of Prolific Trade;

• evidence attributing personal responsibility to Van Gorsel in player complaints or in drafting controversial advertising campaigns.

For regulators, operators, and suppliers, the practical lesson is clear: an owner's name appears in regulatory papers, but determining the capacity for disposition over assets and operational responsibilities requires a formal audit and, where applicable, legal proceedings to provide additional proof.

Relevance to the sector and upcoming milestones

The case will remain under attention as civil investigations in Brazil advance and as the documents originating from Curaçao are explored. Possible next steps include inquiries into the origin and nature of the declared wealth, administrative procedures by Brazilian authorities regarding advertising and player protection, and potential actions arising from the complaints detected in the analysis of more than 42,000 reports.

To understand the regulatory dimension, it is pertinent to follow the actions of the Public Ministry of the Federal District and the evolution of approvals under Foggo Entertainment Ltda. in Brazil. Operators and suppliers working in the Brazilian market must take these dynamics into account when designing campaigns and compliance controls.