Zipmex CEO Refuses to Quit Despite A$73 Million Loss

Zipmex co-founder and CEO Marcus Lim is standing firm on his intention to pilot the troubled exchange through a three-month stay of execution from creditors, which it won in the Singapore High Court last week.

Lim vows he will continue to steer the ship unless its new major shareholders tell him to resign, as he works to repay the $US50 million (A$72.8 million) lost through the collapse of crypto lenders Babel Finance and Celsius Network.

‘Key Shareholder’ Sought Lim’s Resignation

Earlier this month, a key shareholder of the exchange had sent Lim a letter requesting his resignation, citing a “loss of confidence between partners” and consequences from the Babel disclosure, according to a Bloomberg story attributed to a source claiming “specialist knowledge” of the situation.

Zipmex halted transfers and withdrawals in July when news broke of the missing millions. Since then the exchange has enabled partial withdrawals of its customers’ Bitcoin and Ether holdings, albeit in minuscule amounts.

Meanwhile, the three-month moratorium providing bankruptcy protection against creditors will hopefully enable the hamstrung exchange to complete a fresh capital raise of between $US50 million and $US80 million. Lim’s intention is to ultimately return funds to investors, all while he oversees a restructuring of the company.

New Shareholders May Seek New Leadership

“This plan includes potentially bringing in new majority shareholders who may want a greater say in management decisions,” Lim told The Australian Financial Review. “Should this happen, my co-founder Akalarp [Yimwilai] and I have made it clear that we will fully cooperate with them and their wishes in the event they may be looking for a management change.”

Zipmex, which employs around 250 people across Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and Australia, joins two other Singapore-based firms attempting to trade their way out of financial difficulties brought on by the current market downturn. Vauld was also granted a three-month moratorium on its debts by the same court last week, while another crypto lender, Hodlnaut, announced widespread staff layoffs pending “police proceedings” after it too sought protection from creditors.