Key Takeaways:
- Alameda Ventures plans to acquire all Voyager digital assets and digital asset loans.
- FTX and Alameda Ventures to offer Voyager’s customers an option to start a new FTX account with an opening cash balance
- FTX also plans to acquire all its customer information for a payment of $15 million and receive trademarks and other intellectual property.
Leading crypto exchange FTX has announced a plan to provide early liquidity to customers of the now insolvent Voyager Digital.
Under this joint proposal, Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX and Alameda Ventures will offer Voyager Digital customers an option to start a new FTX account with an opening cash balance funded by an early distribution on a portion of their bankruptcy claims.
As part of the new offer, Alameda Ventures plans to acquire all Voyager digital assets and digital asset loans. The official press release stresses that the firm won’t be inheriting any of Voyager’s loans granted to now insolvent Three Arrows Capital (3AC). Alameda Ventures-SBF’s other venture had earlier given a loan of $200 million and 15,000 bitcoins to Voyager.
The official statement further states that the participation is voluntary, and customers would be able to withdraw their cash immediately or use it to purchase digital assets on the FTX platform.
On top of buying Voyager’s digital assets, FTX also plans to buy all its customer information for a payment of $15 million and receive intellectual property, including trademarks. SBF’s FTX will also waive off the $75 million loan claim against Voyager Digital. The exchange expects to conclude its offer to Voyager customers by early August.
Commenting on the joint proposal, FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried(SBF) said:
“The goal of our joint proposal is to help establish a better way to resolve an insolvent crypto business — a way that allows customers to obtain early liquidity and reclaim a portion of their assets without forcing them to speculate on bankruptcy outcomes and take one-sided risks.”
As per the official statement, Voyager Digital customers who did not choose to create an FTX account would retain all of their rights and claims in the bankruptcy proceedings but would not receive early reimbursement. If Voyager accepts this proposal, then its customers will be protected from the depreciation of the crypto assets they do not have access to.
The reimbursement for their digital assets will be based on their value on July 5, which is a day before when Voyager filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The bankruptcy filing came a week after the firm announced that it was halting withdrawals, trading, and deposits on its platform. The crypto lending platform was pushed into insolvency after crypto hedge fund 3AC defaulted on its loans.
3AC failed to repay Voyager Digital after receiving a loan comprising $350 million in a USD stablecoin, and 15,250 Bitcoins, worth around $323 million. According to Forbes, the borrowed debt stands at around $650 million. Voyager has requested $25 million by June 24, and repayment of the entire balance by June 27. However, 3AC has not paid heed to Voyager’s multiple requests and is yet to repay its loan
To satiate customer demons, Voyager has requested the bankruptcy court to honor withdrawal requests for $350m in cash funds held on behalf of its customers at a custodian bank. The crypto firm is also seeking court permission to sell crypto assets that belong to customers with negative US dollar balances.
FTX has engaged in several crypto bailouts ever since the LUNA crash, followed by 3AC exposure started taking out big names in the industry FTX recently reached a deal with troubled crypto lender BlockFi, which includes a $400 million revolving credit facility and an option to acquire the platform at a variable price of up to $240 million.
