Voyager Digital Ltd, the bankrupt crypto lending platform, may get acquired by FTX US. If the bid is successful, customers of Voyager might be able to recover 72% of their funds stuck on the platform.
US Bankruptcy Judge Michael E. Wiles clarified on Wednesday that Voyager has the option to cancel its deal with FTX, if it can find a bidder who is willing to offer higher reimbursement to the customers. This clause is dubbed “fiduciary out,” in the court document provided.
Voyager appealed to the court to allow them to send the payout plan to creditors, including its crypto customers for a vote. However, either sales will not close until the judge approves Voyager’s bankruptcy payout plan. The court hearing mentioned that “if the plan falls apart, there’s no part of this agreement that survives.”
Last month, after FTX secured a winning bid worth about $1.4 billion to acquire Voyager, the lending platform touted the upcoming shift for customers. In order to secure this two-week long bidding process, FTX’s first priority would be to repay investors in full, letting other account holders to recover about 72% of the value of their accounts, which has been frozen since 1 July.
In July, Voyager Digital filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 in the Southern District Court of New York. The company claimed that they were in debt up to $10 billion in assets to more than 100,000 creditors. Voyager explained in a press release that the move was part of “comprehensive reorganization” to protect assets on the platform and maximize value for all stakeholders, including customers.
Stephen Ehrlich, Chief Executive Officer of Voyager noted that “Voyager’s platform was built to empower investors by providing access to crypto asset trading with simplicity, speed, liquidity, and transparency. While I strongly believe in this future, the prolonged volatility and contagion in the crypto markets over the past few months, and the default of Three Arrows Capital (“3AC”) on a loan from the company’s subsidiary, Voyager Digital, LLC, require us to take deliberate and decisive action now. The chapter 11 process provides an efficient and equitable mechanism to maximize recovery.”
