From chips to herbs
Fallen computer whiz swaps mansion for a simple lifestyle
INTERNET tycoon Daniel Tzvetkoff, who once topped the multibillion-dollar poker payment industry, has launched a business growing herbs and vegetables.
The Bulletin can reveal that in a surprise move, Mr Tzvetkoff, 33, has opened Stacked Farm in a Gold Coast industrial warehouse, selling produce to upmarket restaurants and grocers.
Speaking for the first time since his arrest by FBI agents in the US in 2010, Mr Tzvetkoff said he was a changed man after hitting rock bottom and being locked up, before returning to Australia.
He once owned a $27 mil- lion Hedges Ave mansion, a nightclub, superyacht and luxury cars, including a Lamborghini, and used a private jet. His personal wealth reached an estimated $87 million.
But he said the mansion was a “stupid buy” and he never lived there. While it looked like he was living the high life, he didn’t have time to enjoy the perks because of the high-stress environment.
“I don’t give a s*** about cars or houses anymore or anything like that,” Mr Tzvetkoff said.
“When you are young, to me, I judged how well somebody was doing by those things. Now I kind of prefer to be building something more than living a lavish lifestyle.”
Swapping computers and code-crunching for perennials and high-end herbs, Mr Tzvetkoff said he combined his knowledge of technology with his other love – food.
The creator of the first vertical farm in Australia, he grows 25 varieties of herbs, vegetables and edible flowers for Gold Coast restaurants.
He said the business cost “well under” $100,000 to set up. A friend who owns a 30 per cent share and family members helped bankroll the project. Mr Tzvetkoff, who made his money through payment processor Intabill, was declared bankrupt before his US arrest.
He was facing a hefty jail term of up to 75 years in the US for bank fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business for processing $543 million in gambling money.
He was accused of circumventing US laws by moving money through overseas shell companies and disguising transactions by making them appear to come from legitimate non-gambling-related businesses.
But he became an informant, was released from custody and helped take down three US online poker giants on “Black Friday”, in a move that changed the industry forever.
Despite a strong belief by many in the poker industry that he hid away millions when his companies went bust, Mr Tzvetkoff said: “I lost every single thing, I was literally down to zero.”
Discharged as a bankrupt in 2013, Mr Tzvetkoff returned to the Gold Coast where he has set out rebuilding his life.
He said he now enjoys a relaxed life and his children, aged seven and 10, are his priority.