SEC and the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) opposed the purchase of the assets of the bankrupt cryptocurrency broker Voyager Digital by the American branch of Binance.
According to the SEC, the $1.02 billion deal may violate securities laws, as it involves the payment of debt to former Voyager customers, including in the native VGX token.
“Transactions with crypto assets required to rebalance, redistribute such assets among account holders, may violate the prohibition on unregistered offering and sale of securities,” the agency said in a statement.
The regulator also pointed to Binance’s pending fines for past violations of money laundering and corruption laws as evidence that the deal could become “impossible to complete.”
In its turn NYDFS And Attorney General Letitia James said Voyager illegally serves customers in the state.
“Despite the fact that none of the debtor companies are not licensed in New York, we are aware of evidence that they are operating in the state in violation of the law,” the department said in a statement.
The NYDFS added that the plan discriminates against New Yorkers because they will not be able to return the cryptocurrency for six months while Binance.US receives state approval.
In January, the SEC had already opposed the deal, questioning Binance.US’s ability to finance it. Then Voyager called these statements “hypocritical.”
On February 22, a majority of Voyager’s creditors approved the deal to sell assets to Binance.US.
CryptoNewsHerald previously reported that the US Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation into the management of a bankrupt cryptocurrency broker for unfair and misleading marketing.
Recall that in December 2022, the American division of Binance offered the highest price for Voyager Digital assets – $1.002 billion and another $20 million as a possible positive revaluation.
Broker clients will be able to recover some of their funds through Binance.US accounts.
The partners expect the deal to close and payouts to begin in March.
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