Digital Currency Group (DCG), the parent company of Grayscale Investments, reported a strong rise in its revenue for the fourth quarter. The revenue surged to $210 million, marking a 59% increase from $132 million in the same period the previous year, as revealed in a letter to shareholders.
This growth in revenue was largely attributed to the rise in asset prices, particularly Bitcoin. The company’s EBITDA also saw a notable increase to $99 million, compared to a loss of $7 million in the fourth quarter of 2022.
For the fiscal year 2023, DCG announced consolidated revenues of $749 million with an EBITDA of $275 million. As of December 31, 2023, the company’s investment portfolio, which includes tokens, shares of Grayscale trust, venture/fund investments, and public equities, was valued at approximately $975 million.
Despite the billions of assets under management shed by Grayscale’s newly converted spot bitcoin ETF, it remains the largest fund of its kind, accounting for over a third of the daily spot bitcoin ETF trading volumes.
DCG is currently navigating through a lawsuit with the New York Attorney General, accusing the company, along with its lending unit Genesis Global Holdco and Gemini, of defrauding investors of more than $3 billion. Genesis Global Holdco filed for bankruptcy protection about a year ago but recently settled a lawsuit with the Securities and Exchange Commission, agreeing to a $21 million payment.
Back in December, Barry Silbert and Mark Murphy, top executives at Digital Currency Group (DCG), resigned from the board of directors at digital asset manager Grayscale Investments.
These resignations came at a time when DCG faces legal challenges. In October, the New York Attorney General Letitia James sued DCG and Barry Silbert, alleging fraud involving more than 230,000 investors and over $1 billion in losses. The allegations, which Silbert and DCG have denied, accuse them of trying to conceal significant losses.
This lawsuit comes amid heightened scrutiny on key players in the crypto sector. Bankman-Fried, the co-founder of crypto exchange FTX and its trading arm Alameda, currently faces fraud and money laundering charges. The bankruptcy of FTX and Alameda in November had a domino effect, causing Genesis to declare bankruptcy in January.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) slapped Genesis and Gemini with charges relating to the unauthorized sale and offer of securities via its Earn lending program. The two entities, according to the prosecution, amassed billions in crypto assets from a vast pool of investors.
