FTX sister company Alameda Research sues Voyager Digital for $446 million

Troubled crypto investment firm Alameda Research is suing bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital to try to recoup FTX’s loan repayments before it filed for bankruptcy in November.

Lawyers in charge of the FTX and Alameda bankruptcy cases filed a lawsuit against Voyager in a Delaware state court on January 30, seeking $445.8 million.

Both companies filed for bankruptcy in 2022, while Voyager’s Chapter 11 filing came four months earlier in July. Following Voyager Chapter 11, cryptocurrency lenders demanded repayment of all outstanding loans to FTX and its affiliate investment firm, Alameda Research.

The repayments on those loans were so close to bankruptcy in November that they are eligible to be repaid, according to FTX lawyers who filed on behalf of Alameda.

FTX claims to have paid Voyager $248.8 million in September and $193.9 million in October. The exchange also paid him $3.2 million in interest in August, according to court filings.

FTX has confirmed that Alameda has used FTX customer deposits for risky investments, but Voyager and other crypto lenders also colluded to “knowingly or recklessly” divert customer funds. It is pouring into Alameda, adding that it has “little to no due diligence.” It said:

“Voyager’s business model was a feeder fund. It recruited individual investors to invest in cryptocurrency investment funds such as Alameda and Three Arrows Capital with little to no due diligence.”

The troubled cryptocurrency exchange hopes to reuse the recovered funds to pay back some of its creditors.

FTX had planned to acquire Voyager before going bankrupt in November.

Related: What tokens can FTX dump into the market?

In another development, FTX asked the court to exclude two Turkish subsidiaries from bankruptcy proceedings.

In a motion filed on Jan. 27, the company sought to exclude FTX Turkey and SNG Investments. This is because US courts do not have jurisdiction in Turkey and believe customers have already initiated private claims against the company.

“The order issued by this court has no legal or practical effect in Turkey and the debtor has no reason to believe that the Turkish government will comply with the order of this court,” the filing said.