Cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US. The move comes a month after the exchange exited the county.
Bittrex has clarified that the bankruptcy affects only its US operation and not the global exchange.
Bittrex stated:
Having previously announced that Bittrex, Inc. would be ceasing all operations in the U.S. effective April 30th, we have now made the decision to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy in federal court in Delaware. This announcement does not impact Bittrex Global, which will continue operations as normal for its customers outside the U.S.
As per the court documents, the bankruptcy petition includes Bittrex, Inc, which is based in Seattle, as well as two Bittrex entities located in Malta and an affiliated entity, Desolation Holdings LLC. However, the proceedings do not involve Bittrex Global GmbH, the Liechtenstein-based entity that provides non-US services.
Bittrex has reported that over 100,000 creditors could be affected by the bankruptcy of the entities. The estimated liabilities and assets of the bankrupt entities range from $500 million to $1 billion, according to a bankruptcy petition filed in Wilmington, Delaware court.
Bittrex added:
While the Bankruptcy Court will ultimately decide the method by which those funds can be claimed by and distributed to our customers, we intend to ask the court to activate those accounts as soon as possible so that customers meeting the necessary regulatory requirements will be able to withdraw them.
