$1M Crypto Mystery Loan to Alameda Research

Last November was a shocking time for the cryptocurrency industry. With the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s giant cryptocurrency exchange FTX and its associated cryptocurrency hedge fund called Alameda Research, investors fear the company that could go down next. I started looking around.

Robbie Ferguson, co-founder and president of Australia’s largest cryptocurrency startup, Immutable, a blockchain gaming company with a $3.5 billion valuation, delivered a reassuring message. “Immutable holds no funds in FTX and does not lend assets to Alameda or FTX,” Ferguson posted on social media on Nov. 12.

There’s nothing to suggest Ferguson was wrong, but the picture is more complicated. A Cayman Islands foundation linked to Immutables has lent Alameda her 10 million digital tokens.

Ferguson’s older brother, Immutable CEO James, is one of three directors of a Cayman Islands corporation called the Digital World Foundation.

The foundation, the nonprofit behind the token behind several immutable projects, has not disclosed the reason for the loan.

In its annual report to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Immutable said one of the key events of last financial year was that it advised the Digital World Foundation Group entities on the successful sale and launch of three tokens. , supported.”

The token is for Immutable X, part of the blockchain technology built by Immutable. Its best game, Gods Unchained. And an upcoming game published by Immutable called Guild of Guardians. The tokens for that last game were lent to Alameda.

There is no indication of wrongdoing by the Foundation, Immutable or its employees, and the loan is of little value compared to the Foundation’s or Immutable’s assets.

However, the deal shows Alameda’s reach in the crypto industry during the height of the bubble in 2021-early 2022. At the time, companies such as Alameda promised investors huge profits, but many ultimately failed to deliver.