In Voyager Digital (CSE:VYGR, OTCQX:VYGVF)’s Chapter 11 proceedings, Alameda Research’s stake in the bankrupt centralised finance (CeFi) lender raises even more questions for the convoluted and messy ordeal.
Alameda, the high-profile investment firm headed by Sam Bankman-Fried, has been doling out vast sums of cash to struggling crypto companies in recent months.
Voyager was one such benefactor, having received a US$500mln credit line paid in US dollars and Bitcoin on June 2022.
But as it turns out, Alameda also owes Voyager a dime or two; approximately US$377mln according to the Chapter 11 petition filed with the United States Bankruptcy Court on Wednesday July 7.
That makes Alameda not only Voyager’s largest creditor, but also the second largest debtor behind collapsed venture capital firm Three Arrows Capital.
How much Alameda put up as collateral for the US$377mln is unclear, as is the date from when the loan was granted (Bankman-Fried has been approached for clarification).
But perhaps a more pertinent question is why did Alameda take out a collateralised loan with a centralised lending platform in the first place?
the firm seemingly has a healthy war chest given the amount of distressed assets it is buying up lately.
Furthermore, Alameda presumably could have paid off its debt rather than extending a line of credit for more than what was owed.
But it could all be a shrewd move on SBF’s behalf, since primary creditors have some influence over how Chapter 11 restructurings proceed.
Will SBF use this power to direct funds back to the retail customers who have been hit most by the bankruptcy?
It’s possible, but regardless, he does not seem too phased about his firm’s nine-figure outstanding debt to Voyager.A fairly sarcastic Tweet posted from Alameda’s otherwise dormant account — which was subsequently retweeted by SBF himself — stated that Alameda is “happy to return the Voyager loan and get our collateral back whenever works for Voyager”.
happy to return the Voyager loan and get our collateral back whenever works for voyager
— Alameda Research (@AlamedaResearch) July 8, 2022
A reasonable request, but one that Voyager is in no capacity to honour.
Voyager’s total estimated liabilities range between US$1bln to US$10bln, spread among over 100,000 creditors.
In addition to bankruptcy, Voyager could now be in hot water with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation over misleading marketing claims regarding the safety of custodially held customer funds.