- BlockFi's CEO has denied that FTX has agreed a deal to buy the crypto lender for a fraction of its $1 billion value.
- "Lots of market rumors out there — I can 100% confirm that we aren't being sold for $25 million," Zac Prince said.
- FTX boss Sam Bankman-Fried is seen as a "lender of last resort" to firms hit by the crypto sell-off.
The boss of troubled crypto lender BlockFi has denied that Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX is set to buy the company for $25 million, despite speculation about a deal.
Citing sources familiar with the situation, CNBC reported Thursday that Bankman-Fried's crypto exchange was close to agreeing the deal to acquire BlockFi.
A price of $25 million would be a 97.5% discount on BlockFi's most recent reported valuation of $1 billion, already a big step down from last year's valuation of $5 billion.
BlockFi co-founder and CEO Zac Prince didn't deny that a deal could take place, but did push back on the details.
"Lots of market rumors out there — I can 100% confirm that we aren't being sold for $25 million," Prince tweeted Thursday. "I encourage everyone to trust only details that you hear directly from BlockFi."
"We will share more with you as soon as we can," he added.
This year's brutal sell-off in cryptocurrencies has put pressure on the crypto ecosystem of companies, with bitcoin down 58% and ethereum losing 71% this year so far, according to CoinDesk data.
BlockFi has suffered major losses and received a $250 million loan from FTX founder Bankman-Fried last week.
"Today we're injecting $250 million into BlockFi and partnering with them so they can navigate the market from a position of strength," Bankman-Fried said as he announced the bailout. "BlockFi is financially strong; all operations are normal, as they always have been, and assets are safe."
The crypto billionaire is being described as a "lender of last resort" to firms whose business has been hit by the market sell-off. FTX lent the brokerage firm Voyager Digital $450 million last month after it suffered major liquidity issues.
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FTX was exploring a deal to take over the another struggling crypto lender, Celsius Network, but walked away after finding a a $2 billion hole in its balance sheet, The Block reported Thursday, citing two people with knowledge of the matter.
Celsius froze all account transfers and withdrawals in June, citing extreme market conditions, after suffering liquidity issues of its own. It has hired restructuring advisers, and customers say their funds have been locked in ever since.
BlockFi, Celsius, and FTX did not respond to Insider's request for comment.
Read more: Crypto mega-billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried lays out what he fears most as FTX's growth explodes