Bitvavo, a Dutch cryptocurrency exchange, said on Saturday that it is attempting to collect 280 million euros ($296.30 million).
From Digital Currency Group (DCG) and its subsidiaries in the United States.
Bitvavo stated that it had loaned the funds to DCG subsidiary Genesis Global Capital in order to provide Bitvavo’s own clients with a product in which they could earn interest on their cryptocurrency tokens.
Following the fall of FTX, Genesis stopped withdrawals in November. In an early December letter to clients, it stated that it was developing a plan to protect assets.
On November 11, FTX declared bankruptcy, leaving an estimated 1 million consumers and other investors with total losses in the billions of dollars. The crash resonated throughout the cryptocurrency world, sending bitcoin and other digital assets tumbling.
Bitvavo stated that it anticipated to be compensated in the future, but that it had sufficient finances to cover the assets for its own consumers. It claimed that its customers were not at risk and that they may withdraw all of their monies at any moment.
On Saturday, a DCG public relations representative stated that the accounts in issue were housed at Genesis, not DCG.
“Genesis possesses the (U.S.) regulatory permits necessary,” it added, adding that Genesis was a “autonomous subsidiary”.
Bitvavo’s representative stated that DCG was to blame for the unavailable monies.
“We are in negotiations with different entities of the company, and given the mixing within the group, we hold DCG accountable for the overdue amount,” stated a Bitvavo spokeswoman.
“We refer to the Digital Currency Group and its subsidiaries for completeness.”
Bitvavo is registered as a digital assets services provider with the Dutch central bank (DNB) to prevent money laundering on its platform, but it is not subject to prudential regulation by the DNB or the Netherlands’ Financial Markets Authority.
($1 = 0.9450 euros)
