DWF Labs subsidiaries sue BitGo for $141 million over alleged token lock-up breach
- DWF Labs subsidiaries DWF Maas and Falcon Digital sued cryptocurrency custodian BitGo in London, alleging it sold discounted FF and ESPORTS tokens before their three-month lock-up periods expired.
- The companies are seeking $114 million in damages, arguing that BitGo’s early sales caused the tokens’ prices to fall sharply.
- DWF said it raised the issue with BitGo in April and May but pursued legal action after the company did not provide an undertaking.
DWF Labs subsidiaries DWF Maas and Falcon Digital are suing cryptocurrency custodians BitGo BTGO over an alleged breach of a token sale’s lock-up terms, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
The two investment subsidiaries of market maker DWF Labs allege they agreed to sell Falcon Finance tokens FF$0.1061 and ESPORTS tokens at a discount to BitGo, which would be subject to a three-month lock-up period, in a lawsuit filed in London’s High Court.
Private token sales are common in the digital asset industry as a means for issuers to raise capital for projects without worrying that buyers will immediately dump the tokens to make a quick buck.
British Virgin Islands-based DWF Maas and Panama-based Falcon Digital claim that BitGo breached its contracts by selling digital tokens before the agreed lock-up periods expired, causing their prices to fall.
FF fell from 8 cents at the start of the lock-up in early March, to around 7 cents by late April, while ESPORTS fell from about 28 cents in mid-March to 7 cents in early June. DWF is seeking $114 million in damages on the basis BitGo’s token sales resulted in direct losses through the fall in both tokens’ prices.