- The US government and Voyager’s creditors had approved the agreement
- Creditors to investigate claims against the crypto exchange’s US arm
Binance’s US arm has sent bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital Holdings a letter terminating the asset purchase agreement. The world-leading crypto exchange explained its reasons for backing out of the deal in the following tweet:
Binance.US has made the difficult decision to exercise its right to terminate the asset purchase agreement with Voyager. While our hope throughout this process was to help Voyager's customers access their crypto in kind, the hostile and uncertain regulatory climate in the United States has introduced an unpredictable operating environment impacting the entire American business community.
US govt had approved deal in lengthy negotiation
On April 20, Bankless Times wrote that Voyager Digital Holdings’ plan to sell its assets to Binance’s US branch for $1 billion had been approved in a deal with the US federal government.
According to an April 19 court filing, the US government, the bankrupt lender’s creditors, and the lender finally reached an agreement for the deal to move forward as planned, after a long back-and-forth between all the parties involved.
Ultimately, it was all in vain. Voyager tweeted on April 25:
Today, we received a letter from Binance.US terminating the asset purchase agreement. While this development is disappointing, our Chapter 11 plan allows for direct distribution of cash and crypto to customers via the Voyager platform.
Creditors to sue
The majority of Voyager creditors had approved the deal, as had the cognizant bankruptcy judge, Michael Wiles. According to a tweet by the Voyager Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors, the news was incredibly disappointing and they plan to investigate claims against the crypto exchange’s US arm.
Why did Binance really back out?
Binance had the right to terminate the agreement if it wasn’t concluded within four months. Voyager attorneys warned that the estate and its creditors would have to pay another $100 million if the deal fell apart.
Insiders speculate on Twitter that Binance’s decision is connected to a possible settlement with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which is suing the exchange for selling unregistered crypto derivatives. Binance’s CEO CZ has neither confirmed nor denied the suggestion.
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