Crypto platform BlockFi has filed for bankruptcy. The company has already filed a petition with the US Supreme Court for the appointment of liquidators.
In November, the FTX cryptocurrency exchange experienced serious shocks: due to doubts about its solvency, people began to withdraw their money from there en masse. Its CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, resigned and the exchange was forced to file for bankruptcy. The collapse of FTX to some extent undermined the credibility of the cryptocurrency industry, adversely affected the industry as a whole and brought it to the attention of regulators.
BlockFi, a Bermuda-based crypto firm registered in 2017, filed for bankruptcy. At the moment, a significant part of the actions on the platform has been suspended, in particular, the possibility of withdrawing money. Representatives of BlockFi reported that they had already applied to the court for protection, restructuring and repayment of existing debts. In addition, the crypto firm will have to return investors their deposits. The collapse of FTX was a real shock for BlockFi and the main reason for bankruptcy, because the company provided loans and other financial services, which were secured by borrowers' cryptocurrency assets placed on this exchange. FTX collapsed — and the money, accordingly, was lost.
BlockFi has accumulated over 100,000 creditors. The value of its assets and the amount of liabilities are, according to various estimates, from $1 to $10 billion. According to Reuters, obtained from court documents, the platform owed about $3.1 billion to only 50 of the largest creditors. Among them are Ankura Trust Company, LLC — $729 million and West Realm Shires Inc. — $275 million.
BlockFi financial consultant Mark Renzi noted that the crypto platform did everything possible to create a positive reputation for the cryptocurrency industry and was engaged in the promotion of this industry. In addition, its representatives expressed their hope for the transparency of the litigation and optimal results for each client and other interested parties.