U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane approved Genesis Global's Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan on Friday. This decision allows the bankrupt cryptocurrency lender to return approximately $3 billion in cash and cryptocurrency to its creditors. 🏛️💰

The decision means its parent company Digital Currency Group (DCG) will be able to recover nothing from its bankruptcy proceedings. DCG argued that repayment to Genesis' creditors should be capped at cryptocurrency prices in January 2023, when the company filed for bankruptcy. However, bitcoin was worth $21,084 at the time, which rose to $66,900. 📈

After filing for bankruptcy, Genesis began liquidating $1.6 billion in assets following failed settlement negotiations with DCG and former partner Gemini. Genesis has proposed a plan that estimates it could recover up to 77% of digital asset lenders. This proposal has received broad support from creditors, including customers of the Gemini Earn program.

Judge Sean Lane approved Genesis' bankruptcy plan and a settlement with New York State Attorney General Letitia James. This directed assets to former Earn customers rather than government officials. Lane also approved a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that settled a complaint over the now-expired Earn program.