Executives at the stablecoin issuer Circle and the bankrupt cryptocurrency lender BlockFi have been questioned by two members of Congress investigating the so-called “mutual backscratching arrangements” alleged to have taken place with the now-failed Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). On April 9, letters from Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) were sent to Circle, BlockFi and 12 other non-crypto tech firms asking a series of questions on each firm’s relationship with SVB. The lawmakers stated that more needs to be known about SVB’s reported “coddling” and “white glove” treatment…
Tag: BlockFi
Sen. Warren, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez Ask Circle, BlockFi Why They Banked at Silicon Valley Bank
They have also been asked to provide information about the alleged “coddling” of any of their executives or board members by SVB, including details about financial relationships between the executives and SVB, any trips executives took that were sponsored by SVB, and whether any executive ever raised a red flag internally about SVB’s exposure to uninsured assets. Source
BlockFi to provide over $100K in refunds to California clients
Bankrupt crypto lender BlockFi has agreed to refund more than $100,000 to California customers that had continued to repay loans even after a trading halt on Nov. 10 last year. According to a March 27 statement from California’s financial watchdog, the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI), its investigation discovered at least 111 borrowers in California paid back roughly $103,471 in loan repayments between Nov. 11 and Nov. 22. The regulator claimed that BlockFi failed to “provide timely notification to borrowers that they could stop repaying their BlockFi loans.”…
Bankrupt Crypto Lender BlockFi to Refund More Than $100K to California Clients
The decision, which is subject to a bankruptcy court’s approval, comes after a DFPI investigation found the now-bankrupt crypto lender “failed to provide timely notification” to borrowers that they could stop repaying their loans after the company had paused withdrawals on its platform. As a result, BlockFi’s California borrowers remitted at least $103,471 worth of loan repayments to the lender’s servicer. Source
Bankrupt Crypto Lender BlockFi Given Go-Ahead for Sale of $4.7M of Mining Rigs
The majority of the 6,376 mining rigs BlockFi sold to U.S. Farms & Mining are Bitmain Antminers, according to a previous filing. They are spread across the U.S. – Texas, Georgia, Kentucky and North Dakota – as well as Norway. About 400 of the machines had come into BlockFi’s possession trough foreclosure. Source
BlockFi Bankruptcy Attorney Describes Digital Assets Lender as Safe amid Silicon Valley Bank Crisis
Christine Okike said BlockFi remains safe and looked to access significant cash held with Silicon Valley Bank yesterday. Despite the Silicon Bank exposure, a BlockFi bankruptcy lawyer maintains that the digital asset lender is safe and in no immediate danger. The lawyer, Christine Okike, stated that the embattled New Jersey-based company also has sufficient funds to continue normal operations. As Okike of Kirkland & Ellis said on behalf of BlockFi at a Monday bankruptcy hearing: “BlockFi is fine; we have access to cash to operate in the normal course, including paying employees…
BlockFi in no immediate danger, despite Silicon Valley Bank exposure: Report
According to a lawyer representing the bankrupt crypto lender BlockFi Inc.,the company is in a stable financial position with access to ample cash reserves, despite having over $200 million in exposure to Silicon Valley Bank, Bloomberg reported. According to the report, BlockFi had $227 million invested in a money market mutual fund that Silicon Valley Bank marketed; nevertheless, the risk is probably related to the performance of the fund, not the bank’s financials. https://t.co/xsgWgQRsLy — Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) March 11, 2023 During a bankruptcy hearing on Monday, Christine Okike of Kirkland…
BlockFi Has Cash Access for Staff, Vendors Despite SVB Collapse: Attorney
The New Jersey bankruptcy court had banned BlockFi from investing in secondary financial markets, according to a filing by U.S. Trustee Andrew Vara made on Friday. In a series of letters starting Feb. 17, Vara, a Department of Justice official responsible for bankruptcy matters, urged the lender to shift the funds somewhere where it would be protected by a government guarantee from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Source
BlockFi warned over $227m stuck in Silicon Valley Bank
BlockFi, a cryptocurrency lending platform, has been warned by the bankruptcy trustee that the $227m the company has in Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) may go against bankruptcy laws. This is because these funds are allegedly not protected by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC) deposit insurance. It is because this amount is invested in a money market mutual fund, which may be illegal per bankruptcy laws. BlockFi faces scrutiny over lack of FDIC insurance BlockFi had previously filed for bankruptcy in November last year following FTX’s collapse. According to paperwork…
Filing shows BlockFi has uninsured $227M in Silicon Valley Bank MMMF
According to a new bankruptcy filing, defunct crypto lender BlockFi has $227 million worth of uninsured funds allocated to a money market mutual fund (MMMF) offered by troubled Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). SVB — one of the U.S’s largest banks and key partners to venture-backed companies — was shut down by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) on March 10, with no specifics offered at the time of the closure. The move adds to the recent Silvergate bankruptcy carnage which has seen crypto markets tumble since the…