Digital Currency Group, the digital-asset conglomerate that is negotiating with creditors of its bankrupt lending business, is closing down its TradeBlock subsidiary that provides trade execution, pricing and prime brokerage services to institutional investors.
(Bloomberg) — Digital Currency Group, the digital-asset conglomerate that is negotiating with creditors of its bankrupt lending business, is closing down its TradeBlock subsidiary that provides trade execution, pricing and prime brokerage services to institutional investors.
CoinDesk Inc., the cryptocurrency media and events company that is also controlled by Stamford, Connecticut-based DCG, purchased TradeBlock in 2020 in a transaction where financial details weren’t disclosed. CoinDesk folded the indexing business into its own and the remaining operations were later spun out as the TradeBlock trading platform.
“Due to the state of the broader economy and prolonged crypto winter, along with the challenging regulatory environment for digital assets in the US, we made the decision to sunset the institutional trading platform side of the business,” according to a statement from a DCG spokesperson. The shutdown is effective May 31.
DCG, ran by Barry Silbert, is dealing with challenges brought about in part by the sudden collapse of FTX, one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges, in late 2022. Genesis Global Holdco, which used to offer people who lent out their coins yields, froze withdrawals in November, and filed for bankruptcy in January.
TradeBlock was led by Breanne Madigan, who spent 15 years at Goldman Sachs, including as head of institutional wealth services (Americas), and was also vice president of global institutional markets at Ripple. DCG shuttered its wealth-management division earlier.
In May, DCG missed a $630 million Genesis Global debt payment. DCG, Genesis Global and creditors including Gemini Trust Co. are involved in mediated settlement and restructuring talks. DCG is also, in parallel, in talks to refinance its debt.
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