Share this article
Genesis’ Crypto Trading Arm Is Moving Money Around, a Sign of Normality Amid Sibling’s Bankruptcy
About $125 million was sent to exchanges in the run-up to Genesis’ lending division filing for Chapter 11 protection. More was moved the next day.
Updated May 9, 2023, 4:06 a.m. Published Jan 20, 2023, 11:33 p.m.
Even as Genesis’ crypto-lending business entered bankruptcy court protection, the company’s trading arm, which remained out of Chapter 11, is still moving money around on blockchains – a sign the business was still running at least somewhat as normal.
A wallet controlled by the Genesis over-the-counter trading desk sent about $125 million of ether , and tether to the Coinbase, Binance, Bitstamp and Kraken exchanges on Thursday, the day of the bankruptcy filing, according to blockchain data compiled by Etherscan. In the past several hours, the wallet has transacted several more times, receiving almost $50 million USD coin (USDC).
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
The movements match parent company Digital Currency Group’s (DCG) pledge that the Genesis trading business will “continue to operate business as usual.” (DCG is also CoinDesk's parent company.) It’s early yet, however, so it remains to be seen how the bankruptcy filing of Genesis’s lending entities will affect the spot and derivatives businesses over the long haul.
“The reputation of Genesis is in the bin,” Charles Storry, head of growth at crypto index platform Phuture, said in an interview with CoinDesk. “Maybe they keep some legacy clients. Maybe. As for introducing new clients, no chance while bankruptcy is in play.”
Frank Chaparro, a journalist at The Block, posted a Twitter poll asking users whether they would trade with Genesis after the lending division’s bankruptcy filing. As of press time, 73.7% of the 938 who responded voted “no.”
During the movement of crypto on Thursday, the OTC desk wallet sent 50,000 ETH to Coinbase, 20,000 ETH to Bitstamp and 5,000 ETH to Kraken. It sent an additional 7.7 million FTM worth roughly $2.4 million to Binance and $3.9 million USDT to Kraken, according to Etherscan.
This particular wallet typically moves funds on weekdays, Nansen.ai data shows, so the Thursday transactions looked basically normal amid the bankruptcy drama.
Genesis’ on-chain portfolio, composed of at least eight unique addresses, has a net worth of $307 million as of press time Friday: 74.7% of Genesis’ portfolio is ETH, while the next six tokens – USDC, , , , and aave – make up 13.8% of the entire portfolio.
This figure is most likely a conservative estimate of Genesis’ total holdings. DarkFi.eth, one of the white hats who stole and subsequently returned roughly $2 million from the Nomad bridge exploit in August 2022, told CoinDesk: “It is not strange for venture firms to obscure what wallets hold their tokens.” Even so, Genesis’ known holdings make it the third-biggest whale on Nansen’s Funds Leaderboard, after Jump Trading and Paradigm Capital.
Genesis didn’t return a request for comment by press time.
More For You
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
More For You
Tom Lee urges BitMine shareholders to approve share increase ahead of January 14 vote
The chairman of the former bitcoin miner-turned-ether treasury firm reiterated his view that Ethereum is the future of finance.
What to know:
- Tom Lee, chairman of Bitmine Immersion (BMNR), urged shareholders to approve an increase in the company's authorized share count from 500 million to 50 billion.
- Lee assured shareholders that the increase is not intended to dilute shares, but instead to enable capital raising, dealmaking, and future share splits.
- Shareholders have until January 14 to vote on the proposal, with the annual meeting scheduled for January 15 in Las Vegas.
Top Stories
