Australian cryptocurrency exchange Digital Surge appears to have narrowly avoided collapse, despite having millions of dollars in digital assets tied up in the now-bankrupt FTX crypto exchange. On Jan. 24 local time, Digital Surge creditors approved a five-year bailout plan, which aims to eventually refund its 22,545 customers who had their digital assets frozen on the platform since Nov. 16, while allowing the exchange to continue operating. The rescue plan was first floated to customers by the exchanges’ directors via email on Dec. 8, the same day the company fell into administration. As per the “Deed of Company Arrangement,” the …

Bankrupt crypto lending firm BlockFi has reportedly uploaded financials by accident, revealing $1.2 billion in assets tied up with bankrupt exchange FTX and Alameda Research. According to a Jan. 25 report from CNBC, the unredacted filings show that as of Jan. 14, BlockFi had $415.9 million worth of assets linked to FTX, and a whopping $831.3 million in loans to Alameda. The financials were leaked as part of a presentation put together by M3 Partners, who is an advisor to the creditor committee. The crypto lending firm filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy on Nov. 28, weeks after the collapse of …

Cryptocurrency has faced more than its fair share of catastrophes, nearly all of which seemed as though they might end or at least seriously impede the continued growth of the sector. Yet despite the many “teachable moments,” the social layer of crypto refuses to learn its lesson and continues to place its trust in the hands of individuals rather than fully utilize the technologies it claims to support. Since the early days of the industry, crypto has faced major blows at the hands of centralized actors — Mt. Gox, which handled 70% of global Bitcoin transactions, lost track of 25,000 …

Bankrupt crypto lending firm BlockFi has plans to sell off $160 million in loans backed by around 68,000 Bitcoin mining machines as part of bankruptcy proceedings, according to reports. In a Bloomberg report on Jan. 24, two people “familiar with the matter” claim that BlockFi started the process of selling off the loans last year. The crypto lender filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Nov. 2022, citing its significant exposure to the now-defunct crypto exchange FTX for its downfall. However, some of these loans have already defaulted since then and could be undercollateralized given the decline in the price of …

While Bitcoin (BTC) has experienced a stroprice pump to kick off the new year, many industry pundits are not convinced the cryptocurrency will continue its upward trajectory — at least in the short to mid-term. The impressive price surge — which saw BTC experience 14 days of consecutive price increases earlier this month — has called on many to consider whether the surge marks a significant “breakthrough” or is indicative of a “bull trap." Speaking to Cointelegraph on Jan. 23, James Edwards, a cryptocurrency analyst at Australian-based fintech firm Finder said the argument for a “bull trap” is stronger, warning …

Amid ongoing investigations around the defunct crypto exchange FTX, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) questions the due diligence conducted by institutional investors and their accountability regarding the loss of users’ funds. CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero stated that VCs that had to write down their investments in millions of dollars to nearly zero raises “serious questions” about the due diligence conducted over the last year, speaking to Bloomberg. She raised concerns about FTX CEO John Ray’s revelations in court about not having any records and controls over the exchange’s financials. I'm glad Mr. Ray is finally paying lip service …

According to new court filings, disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) will be subject to the forfeiture of roughly $700 million worth of assets if he were to be found guilty of fraud. In a court document filed on Jan 20, U.S. federal prosecutor Damian Williams outlined that the “government respectfully gives notice that the property subject to forfeiture” covers a long list of assets across fiat, shares and crypto. The filings state that most of the assets were seized by the government between Jan.4 and Jan. 19, while it is also looking to lay claim to “all monies and …

Crypto will play a “major role” in the United Arab Emirates' global trade moving forward, says the UAE’s minister of state for foreign trade Thani Al-Zeyoudi. Speaking with Bloomberg on Jan. 20 in Davos Switzerland — where world leaders are currently gathered for the 2023 World Economic Forum — Al-Zeyoudi provided a host of updates regarding the UAE’s trade partnerships and policies heading into 2023. Commenting on the crypto sector, the minister stated that “crypto will play a major role for UAE trade going forward,” as he outlined that "the most important thing is that we ensure global governance when …

Large enterprise businesses spend tons of money keeping track of their financial dealings — think accountants, financial analysts, consultants and enterprise-grade accounting software. Sam Bankman-Fried, meanwhile, used Microsoft Excel. On Jan. 17, in another sloppy Excel spreadsheet, SBF revealed that FTX US was solvent. The Excel file purportedly showed customer balances, bank deposits and assets held in cold storage. “S&C forgot to include bank balances” of roughly $428 million, SBF said, referring to FTX’s former legal counsel Sullivan & Cromwell. “Once you add those back in, you get in the neighborhood of my prior balance sheet” of around $350 million, …

James Bromley, one of the lawyers representing debtors in FTX’s bankruptcy case, has criticized social media activity against his law firm promulgated by posts from former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. In a Jan. 20 hearing in the District of Delaware, lawyers spoke on motions dealing with potential conflicts of interest between Sullivan & Cromwell, the law firm tasked with the investigation of FTX’s bankruptcy, and the crypto exchange. Bromley, a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell, pushed back against the narrative that the law firm would be unable to act as a disinterested examiner given it had previously provided legal services to …

The former head of FTX US is launching a new cryptocurrency software company and has raised $5 million from several investors, according to Bloomberg. Brett Harrison, who served as president of FTX US between May 2021 and September 2022, has received backing from Coinbase Ventures and Circle Ventures to launch a new software startup. SALT Fund, Motivate VC, P2P Validator, Third Kind Venture Capital, Shari Glazer of Kalos Labs and Anthony Scaramucci also participated in the seed round. His new startup, dubbed Architect, will develop trading software for large institutions looking to access crypto markets. He told Bloomberg that he …

Several crypto industry commentators have laid skepticism on FTX CEO John Ray’s vision to potentially reboot the crypto exchange, citing trust issues and “second-class” treatment of customers as some reasons why users may not “feel safe to go back.” Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried tweeted on Jan. 20 praising John Ray for looking at a reboot of FTX, suggesting it is the best move for its customers. I'm glad Mr. Ray is finally paying lip service to turning the exchange back on after months of squashing such efforts! I'm still waiting for him to finally admit FTX US is solvent …