DAO1 & Apertum Securities Fraud Warning Issued by Alberta
The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) has issued an official securities fraud warning against DAO1 and Apertum on April 22, 2026. The regulator warns that DAO1 is not registered to trade or advise on securities in Alberta and advises investors to stay away.
What is DAO1 and Apertum?
DAO1 is a crypto investment scheme centered around the APTM token from Apertum Foundation. The ASC has flagged the websites dao1.ai, dao1.info, and apertum.io in its warning. It states that dealing with unregistered firms offers no investor protection and violates Canadian securities law.
Run by Convicted Fraudster Josip Heit
DAO1 and Apertum are operated by Josip Heit, a convicted fraudster from Croatia (believed to hold a German passport), along with his associates. This new scheme was launched after the collapse of GSPartners — another fraudulent investment platform built around the G999 token.
GSPartners collapsed in late 2023 after receiving multiple regulatory warnings. Heit settled fraud charges in September 2024 and agreed to refund victims, but the settlement is still ongoing.
Multiple International Warnings
In addition to Alberta, DAO1 and Apertum have received fraud warnings from:
- Germany
- Latvia
- New Zealand
- Australia
- Lithuania
As of March 2026, the DAO1 website was receiving around 22,000 monthly visits, mainly from Germany, Dominican Republic, South Africa, UK, and the US.
