2023s Biggest Crypto Collapses: Top Bankruptcies That Shocked the Market
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In the last 15 years, the crypto market has changed a lot, growing into a massive $1.72 trillion industry.
But, like any journey, success in the crypto world comes with risks and challenges. The year 2022 has been a rough year for cryptocurrency, as many cryptocurrency & investment giant firms went bankrupt.
Leading this bankruptcy was a prominent crypto firm, Voyager Digital, followed by Three Arrows Capital and Celsius Network, and the mighty FTX exchange crumbling in its wake.
During the crypto bloodbath of 2022, the challenges spilled over into 2023, causing many firms to buckle under the relentless pressure of the bear market & changing regulatory laws.
Well, in todays article, we will be going to uncover the list of notable cryptocurrency firms that faced bankruptcy in 2023.
Genesis Collapse
Genesis Global Capital was one of the largest crypto lenders founded in 2013, which drew millions of customers with the promise that they could deposit their crypto holdings and earn sky-high returns.
Well, things started falling apart for Genesis when US regulators charged it with unregistered crypto securities sales through the Gemini Earn Lending Program on Jan 12, 2023.
Following this, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. At the time, Genesis had $900 million from 340,000 Gemini Earn investors. However, they owed over $3.5 billion to various creditors, including nearly a billion to customers on the Gemini exchange.
As a result, things got worse for Gemini when the hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) collapsed on July 1, 2022, filing for Chapter 15 Bankruptcy. This took away $1.2 billion out of the $2.36 billion that Three Arrows Capital had borrowed from Genesis. Amid these challenges, CEO Michael Moro resigned and Genesis faced several regulatory charges.
Cash Cloud
Since 2014, Cash Cloud has been one of the few vendors offering cryptocurrency ATMs. Starting from a Las Vegas souvenir shop and reaching over 4,000 globally, it has seen remarkable growth.
Despite this growth, the company is now on the brink of collapse. In February 2023, Cash Cloud filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to substantial debt and insufficient liquid assets.
According to the bankruptcy filing by Coin Cloud, affiliated with Cash Cloud, has assets ranging from $50 million to $100 million and liabilities ranging from $100 million to $500 million.
Meanwhile, With court proceedings scheduled for December 2023 and potential hearings extending into 2024, the future of Cash Cloud is uncertain, raising questions about its viability.
Emergent Fidelity Technologies
Emergent Fidelity Technologies is an investment firm primarily owned by FTX co-founders Sam Bankman-Fried (90%) and Gary Wang (10%). On February 3rd, 2023, Emergent Fidelity Technologies Voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Meanwhile, the spotlight fell on the company after BlockFi sued Emergent Fidelity Technologies on 28 Nov 2022, seeking 56 million pledged Robinhood shares from Bankman-Fried. Perhaps the shares valued at over $600 million were key assets.
Notably, Emergent Fidelity had a setback when the U.S. DOJ seized 55 million shares of Robinhood Markets Inc. and about $20.7 million in cash on January 6, 2023.
This action followed criminal charges against both FTX co-founders, with Bankman-Frieds trial scheduled for 2024 and Gary Wang having already pleaded guilty.
Bittrex
Bittrex is one of the worlds 3 topmost cryptocurrency exchanges with a monthly trading volume of around $300 million, established in 2014.
After some time the company found itself in legal trouble when the Securities and Exchange Commission sued it on April 17th, 2023, alleging that it operated an unregistered securities exchange, brokerage, and clearing agency.
A month later on 08 May 2023, Bittrex filed for bankruptcy protection. In a filing, it found that Bittrex has more than 100,000 creditors, with estimated liabilities and assets both within the $500 million to $1 billion range.
Bittrex said that it was still holding crypto assets of U.S. customers who did not withdraw funds before April 30. Those assets are safe and secure. On Aug 10 Bittrex agreed to pay $24 million to settle claims by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that the cryptocurrency exchange failed to register with the agency.
Prime Trust
On August 14, 2023, Prime Trust, a digital asset services firm, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to a customer funds shortfall. In a filing, CEO Jor Law claims previous leaders of Prime Trust doubled down on spending when revenues were tight.
Meanwhile, in October, Prime Trust incurred a net loss of over $7 million with $10.5 million in spending against $3.1 million in revenue. The following month saw increased spending at $11.1 million, resulting in another net loss of approximately $8.4 million. CEO Jor Law disclosed that Prime Trust invested $6 million in client funds and $2 million from its treasury into Terra before its failure.
Prime Trust was shut down later on June 27 by Nevada regulators after they learned the company owed $500 million in fiat and cryptocurrencies to 25,000 to 50,000 creditors with about $50 million in assets remaining.
Conclusion
As we reflect on the events of 2023, the crypto market witnessed giants crumble under regulatory scrutiny, financial mismanagement, and market volatility. From Genesis Global Capital to Prime Trust, the stories of these fallen giants serve as cautionary tales in a market that continues to evolve.
The crypto landscape, ever-changing and unforgiving, reminds us that even the most prominent players are not immune to the challenges that lie ahead.
Text source: Coinpedia – Fintech & Cryptocurreny News Media| Cr
