Cryptocurrency exchange CoinFlex paused withdrawals recently, and its CEO has identified one of the parties he says owes the firm money.
CoinFlex CEO Mark Lamb says Roger Ver, the entrepreneur behind Bitcoin.com, owes the exchange $47 million.
The exchange made headlines after it temporarily suspended withdrawals, citing a failure by a counterparty to repay a $47 million obligation.
CoinFlex has identified that counterparty as Roger Ver. Lamb said:
“Roger Ver owes CoinFlex $47 million USDC. We have a written contract with him obligating him to personally guarantee any negative equity on his CoinFlex account and to top up margin regularly. He has been in default of this agreement and we have served a notice of default.”
Roger Ver denied those claims, calling Lamb’s statements false and asserting that he does not owe the exchange money.
Recently some rumors have been
spreading that I have defaulted on a
debt to a counter-party. These rumors
are false. Not only do I not have a debt
to this counter-party, but this counter-
party owes me a substantial sum of
money, and I am currently seeking the
return of my funds.— Roger Ver (@rogerkver) June 28, 2022
Lamb told Fortune Magazine he is unaware of what Ver is referencing and reiterated that CoinFlex does not owe Ver money. He said:
“He has no funds on CoinFlex. We owe him no funds. He owes us $47 million. We have filed the notice for default and we’ll be doing everything we can to pursue this debt.”
To address the shortfall and restore liquidity, CoinFlex has proposed a fundraising plan that would issue tokens called Recovery Value USD (rvUSD), offering an annual return of about 20%. These tokens would be made available to investors outside the United States.
According to Lamb, the timeline for resuming withdrawals depends on the outcome of that token sale. He explained:
“Our goal here is to make as much information about what happened public as possible, and to work with our customers, investors, and the broader crypto community toward a solution that restores customer withdrawals while we pursue this debt. If we can raise the necessary funds through this offering, we can solve the problem and eliminate this short-term issue.”
Despite the company’s immediate challenges, Lamb expressed optimism about the broader cryptocurrency market and said CoinFlex will continue engaging with stakeholders to find a resolution.