Abra will open customer withdrawals following Texas settlement

Abra held around $13.6 million worth of cryptocurrencies for 12,000 customers, according to the settlement

January 23, 2024 11:37 am

Abra CEO William Barhydt | Permissionless II by Blockworks

Abra and securities regulators in Texas reached an agreement, allowing users to withdraw funds from the platform.

The agreement in principle requires Abra to send a check “or secure bank instrument” to clients who have holdings of $10 or more in assets on the crypto platform.

The Texas Securities Board said that Abra, at the time that Texas took action against the company, held crypto worth around $13.6 million for around 12,000 customers.

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“Existing securities laws are well equipped to protect investors purchasing traditional products such as stocks or bonds as well as new and innovative securities tied to digital assets and evolving technologies,” Commissioner Travis J. Iles said.

The announcement said that Abra and Barhydt have 30 days from the announcement of the settlement in principle to “complete its obligations.”

Any assets that are left following Abra’s notices will be converted to fiat and “directed to remaining Texas investors.”

Additionally, the terms of the settlement in principle require Barhydt to hire a chief compliance officer for “any entity he controls or is a principal of that is in the business of providing investment advice or issuing or offering securities.”

Both Abra and CEO William Barhydt received an emergency cease and desist letter from the Texas State Securities Board back in June.

The regulator accused the crypto platform of making “offers of investments in Abra Earn in Texas containing statements that were materially misleading or otherwise likely to deceive the public.”

Abra, in 2022, planned to launch as the first regulated crypto bank in the US. However, it made personnel cuts throughout the company after FTX collapsed and later received the cease and desist order.

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