Share this article
'Bitcoin Jesus' Says He Has the Money to Pay Ailing Crypto Lender Genesis
Roger Ver, an early Bitcoin advocate who now advocates for the Bitcoin Cash blockchain, has been accused in court by Genesis of failing to settle cryptocurrency options, with $20.9 million of damages sought.
Updated Jan 25, 2023, 8:59 p.m. Published Jan 25, 2023, 6:12 p.m.
Roger Ver, the blockchain-industry veteran once known as “Bitcoin Jesus” thanks to his early evangelism for the bitcoin cash (BCH) cryptocurrency, said Wednesday that he has “sufficient funds” to make good on payments allegedly owed to the crypto lending firm Genesis Global.
The issue, according to Ver, is the failure by Genesis to provide the requested assurances about its finances.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Ver provided the comments to CoinDesk in a Telegram chat – and also posted them on Reddit and Twitter – after he was accused by a unit of Genesis Global this week in a New York state court filing of failing to settle cryptocurrency options trades. The unit, GGC International, seeks at least $20.9 million in damages related to the matter.
Genesis Global filed for bankruptcy protection last week. (Genesis is a unit of Digital Currency Group, which also owns CoinDesk.)
“I have sufficient funds on hand to pay Genesis the sums allegedly owed, and I’m happy to pay what I actually owe,” wrote Ver, who now advocates for the Bitcoin Cash blockchain. “However, Genesis was required by our agreement to remain solvent – as Genesis can’t ask its clients to play a ‘Heads clients lose, tails Genesis wins’ game.”
According to Ver, he asked Genesis in June “for assurances of their solvency.”
“In return, Genesis provided me with financial information that has been called into question by recent events,” Ver wrote. “When I asked Genesis to clarify the financial information they had provided me they refused, and instead chose to file suit.”
Ver said he “hoped to obtain this information from them quickly and amicably, as I value our relationship, but it appears I will now be forced to get to the bottom of this in discovery.”
Asked why any concerns about Genesis’ finances would affect his willingness to pay the amount owed, Ver said he wouldn't “be commenting more at the moment.”
A Genesis press representative didn't immediately reply to a request for comment.
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
NFT Project Pudgy Penguins Takes Over Las Vegas Sphere in Holiday Campaign
The NFT brand’s animated segments will air on the Sphere across Christmas week, signaling the crypto company's move into real-world consumer markets.
What to know:
- Pudgy Penguins will run an ad campaign at the Las Vegas Sphere during Christmas week, one of the few crypto brands to secure a spot at the high-profile venue.
- The NFT project, which launched on Ethereum in 2021, has expanded into physical toys and digital gaming as part of a broader consumer push.
- Pudgy Penguins briefly overtook Bored Apes in floor price earlier this year and recently launched its PENGU token on Solana, now trading on major exchanges.
Top Stories
