US Authorities Ban Voyager-Binance.US $1 Billion Deal

U.S. authorities have banned the U.S. arm of cryptocurrency exchange Binance from selling the assets of bankrupt crypto lender Voyager until major legal objections are resolved.

Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York) stated that the approval of the transaction or part of the transaction should be deferred pending appeals to higher courts.

“Nothing in the Bankruptcy Code allows the courts to release parties from liability to the state for past and future actions,” he added.

The Office of Trustees, the branch of the Justice Department responsible for overseeing bankruptcies, appealed the deal just a day after Federal Judge Michael Wiles approved the deal after a controversial four-day marathon of hearings.

Last month, the SEC filed an objection to the purchase of Voyager, arguing that Binance.US may be violating federal securities laws.

If Voyager is unable to complete the sale of the assets, the company has another option - a complete liquidation, which is likely to result in much less compensation to creditors.

Voyager filed for bankruptcy back in July 2022, and since February of this year, they began to actively sell their assets. According to analytics portal Lookonchain, Voyager sold 1449 ETH through Wintermute. Sales were carried out for USDC. In total, Voyager received 2,25 million – $1553 per ETH.