Binance aims to allocate $1 billion for crypto recovery fund

Binance intends to allocate $1 billion for a proposed industry recovery fund, while its CEO revealed intent in a new bid for assets of bankrupt cryptocurrency lending firm Voyager by its United States-based business.

Speaking to BloombergTV on Nov. 24, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao touched on a number of topics in what has been a tumultuous month for the cryptocurrency ecosystem.

Chief among them was Binance’s proposed industry recovery fund, which is aimed at providing financial support to promising projects in financial distress. The exchange’s founder introduced the idea in the wake of FTX’s now-infamous collapse.

Related: Binance CEO denies report firm met with Abu Dhabi investors for crypto recovery fund

Zhao said that details of the fund were due to be published on the exchange’s blog in the coming days, adopting a fairly “loose” structure with contributions from other members of the cryptocurrency ecosystem:

“There’s been back and forth on how to structure that — do we make it a loose fund or an actual fund? I think we’re kind of going with a loose approach where different industry players will contribute as they wish.”

The fund will be publicly viewable according to the Binance CEO, with contributors set to send funds to a central, transparent blockchain address. Zhao also noted that the fund is expected to go live before the end of 2022 while touting a six-month road map within which he expects to see the industry recover. 

The report also noted that Binance.US is interested in a new bid for assets belonging to the now-bankrupt Voyager Digital. The lending firm was one of a handful to go bust in the wake of the Terra collapse in May 2022. 

The Binance CEO also said that the exchange would consider a second look at some assets or businesses belonging to FTX. Binance considered a deal to buy out Sam Bankman-Fried’s exchange before its spectacular collapse in November 2022.

Zhao said that FTX had invested in a number of projects, some of which may “be salvageable” and of interest if and when they become available.