Starting in April 2024, Güven raised approximately $7 million from venture capitalists by falsely asserting that Kalder had achieved $1.2 million in annual recurring revenue. She deceived backers by categorizing limited pilot programs or nonexistent partnerships as active enterprise accounts while operating two separate sets of financial ledgers. Furthermore, Güven forged executive signatures on reference documents to successfully obtain an O-1A visa following the expiration of her student status. Her specialized immigration status has since been formally revoked in the wake of the criminal fraud findings.
Key points
Federal authorities established that Kalder secured millions in seed investments by misre…: Federal authorities established that Kalder secured millions in seed investments by misrepresenting brand partnerships and inflating revenue figures.
Fabricated business credentials and unauthorized digital signatures were utilized to unla…: Fabricated business credentials and unauthorized digital signatures were utilized to unlawfully secure an O-1A nonimmigrant visa.
The entrepreneur's approved O-1A work visa has been officially revoked alongside her fede…: The entrepreneur's approved O-1A work visa has been officially revoked alongside her federal conviction and financial penalties.
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A women entrepreneur from Turkey, who had made it to the Forbes' 30 Under 30 cover page in 2025 has been sentenced to 25 months of prison in the US. Gökçe Güven, 27, who founded and ran Kalder, a tech startup, is accused of committing a ‘brazen fraud’. “She promised more than a dozen venture capital investors that Kalder had increasing revenue and a growing customer base—none of which was true—and then deployed those same lies and forgeries to obtain an immigration benefit. Along with our law enforcement partners, the women and men of this Office are committed to protecting the integrity of the private markets and eliminating fraud in the startup space,” said U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald.
Allegations against the tech founder
In April 2024, GÜVEN began raising Kalder’s “seed round,” soliciting investments from dozens of venture capitalists. GÜVEN provided prospective investors with false statements, misleading claims, and fabricated documents regarding Kalder’s revenue and brand partners. Among other things, GÜVEN transmitted to investors a pitch deck that misrepresented that Kalder had 26 brands “using Kalder” and 53 brands in…
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