Bankrupt crypto lending firm Genesis has converted approximately 36 million shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into Bitcoin as part of preparations to settle its debts with creditors. 

According to a recent report by Bloomberg, the company liquidated the GBTC shares on April 2, at a value of around $58.50 per share at that time.

Notably, the share price of GBTC has surged by approximately 50% since Genesis initially sought permission from the U.S. bankruptcy court to sell the shares. 

Back on February 2, when the shares were priced at $38.50, Genesis began the process of offloading the GBTC shares. 

Genesis Buys $2.1 Billion Worth of Bitcoin

The total amount generated from the sale amounted to $2.1 billion, enabling Genesis to acquire 32,041 Bitcoin on April 2, at a price of $65,685 per Bitcoin. 

These acquired Bitcoins will be used by Genesis to fulfill its obligations towards creditors.

As of the time of writing, the 32,041 Bitcoin holds a value of approximately $2.18 billion. 

Genesis purchases $2.1B of Bitcoin following GBTC sell-off

The significant Bitcoin purchase comes after Coinbase declared that the majority of the proceeds from the GBTC sell-off would “remain within the crypto ecosystem.”

Bankrupt crypto lending firm Genesis reportedly… pic.twitter.com/wthYyOpyIu

— Giannis Andreou (@gandreou007) April 6, 2024

In response to concerns about the potential impact of this large sell-off on the crypto market, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase reassured the community that the funds are likely to remain within the crypto ecosystem, having a neutral overall effect on the market.

Coinbase explained that the bankruptcy plan allows Genesis to either convert GBTC shares into Bitcoin assets on behalf of the creditors or sell the shares outright and distribute the cash. 

The move follows Digital Currency Group’s claim that its subsidiary company, Genesis, has proposed to pay its customers more than their actual entitlements. 

Genesis Settles with the SEC

In a bankruptcy court filing last month, Genesis announced that it had reached a settlement agreement with the SEC, agreeing to pay $21 million to resolve the civil lawsuit. 

In November 2022, Gemini Earn had approximately 340,000 customers and $900 million in assets under management, as stated in the SEC’s lawsuit. 

Following FTX’s bankruptcy in the same month, Genesis temporarily suspended Gemini Earn withdrawals, citing “unprecedented market turmoil” and liquidity issues.

Genesis filed for bankruptcy after the SEC’s lawsuit was filed in January of the previous year. 

In February, Gemini agreed to return $1.1 billion to Gemini Earn customers through the Genesis bankruptcy proceeding, as part of a settlement with New York’s financial regulator.

More recently, a federal judge ruled that the SEC’s lawsuit against crypto firms Gemini and Genesis will proceed in court. 

The judge’s decision came after Gemini and Genesis attempted to have the lawsuit, which alleges the sale of unregistered securities through the Gemini Earn program, dismissed.

In a 32-page order, New York District Court Judge Edgardo Ramos rejected the motions to dismiss filed by Gemini and Genesis, stating that the SEC’s allegations were plausible enough to continue with the legal proceedings. 

Additionally, the judge denied a separate request by the companies to halt the SEC’s demand for them to cease selling securities and to hand over Gemini Earn profits if the SEC prevails in the lawsuit.

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