The United States government's request to block Binance's purchase of the defunct brokerage firm Voyager was refused by the District Court for the Southern District of New York. U.S. District Court Judge Michael Wiles has decided that any further delay will do harm to the interests of Voyager's former customers who are ready to get their money.
The court has approved Voyager Digital's Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan, which involves selling billions of dollars in assets to Binance.US to regain liquidity and pay back customers. The plan has already received approval from 97% of the 61,300 Voyager account holders, and it is expected to result in creditors recovering approximately 73% of the value of their funds.
The government had filed an appeal for a stay of the confirmation order, which would have caused an additional delay of two weeks in the bankruptcy plan's realization. The bankruptcy plan's provision that bans U.S. authorities from lawfully prosecuting anyone engaged in the sale was called "immunising fraud, theft, or tax evasion" in the appeal, and its repeal was required.
Judge Wiles ruled to proceed with the bankruptcy plan, dismissing the allegations as exaggerations and mischaracterizations. Still, he verified that the present stay would last until March 20.
On March 7th, the court granted approval for the acquisition of Binance.US by Voyager, and Judge Wiles gave the green light for the trading platform to finalize the sale and issue repayment tokens to affected Voyager customers. Despite the Securities Exchange Commission's objections, the judge dismissed their arguments that the redistribution of funds from Voyager to Binance.US would violate U.S. securities laws.
This ruling is a significant win for both Binance.US and Voyager, as it allows them to move forward with their plans and continue to provide top-notch services to their customers. The decision highlights the importance of transparency and communication between companies and their clients, as evidenced by the overwhelming support for the restructuring plan.
Judge Wiles emphasized that any delays in finalizing the deal could have detrimental effects on the interests of Voyager's former clients, and any further procrastination could cause them significant harm.
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