Voyager to pay US Federal Trade Commission $1,65 billion as part of settlement agreement

The broker will be prohibited from promoting and offering cryptocurrency services

29.11.2023 - 13:15

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2 min

What’s new? The US court approved a settlement agreement between the bankrupt crypto broker Voyager Digital and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), concluded in October this year. As part of it, Voyager will pay a $1,65 billion fine and will also be unable to promote and provide cryptocurrency-related services. In addition, the agreement assumes that the FTC will be able to monitor Voyager’s activities and contact related parties for testimony.

Cointelegraph’s material

What else is known? The approved agreement does not address the proceedings against former Voyager CEO Steve Ehrlich. In October, for example, the FTC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed two separate lawsuits against Ehrlich alleging that he made misleading statements about the use and safety of customer funds.

According to the documents, he falsely claimed the company’s participation in the FDIC’s federal deposit insurance program and secretly used customer assets to make interest-only loans. The CFTC alleges that a loan default by an unnamed company led to Voyager’s bankruptcy.

Voyager filed for bankruptcy in July 2022, valuing its liabilities in the range of $1 billion to $10 billion. In May of this year, the court approved a plan that allows 35,72% of the claims to be returned to customers. It is argued that the new agreement with the FTC will not have a material impact on this plan.

Also in November, crypto exchange Binance agreed to pay a $4,3 billion fine to settle allegations by the US Department of Justice that it violated sanctions and anti-money laundering rules. As part of the agreement, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao stepped down as CEO of the global platform and chairman of the US division.

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