Voyager Asks Judge to Approve $1.9M Funds for Employee Retention Plan

The creditors of cryptocurrency lender Voyager Digital don’t think the business should provide its employee «retention awards,» according to a new court document released late Friday. To use $1.9 million of its cash for a «Key Employee Retention Plan» (KERP), Voyager, which is now going through bankruptcy procedures in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, requested a federal judge’s approval. This entails bonuses for 38 workers, which the business argued were essential for its ongoing operations and reorganization. The Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors, a collection of Voyager clients, objected on Friday, claiming that the company’s staff members are «already well-compensated» and that little has been done to cut costs. According to Voyager’s August 2 petition, the workers carry out «important accounting, cash and digital asset management, IT infrastructure, legal, and other critical activities for the debtors.» As with most chapter 11 retention plans, the KERP allows the debtors to keep hold of a few vital non-insiders.

Cash Retention Rewards

The document stated that KERP outlines the cash retention rewards distribution to 38 non-insider employees. The value of the «major stock component» that often makes up an employee’s overall remuneration «has cratered,» which means that employees are now receiving pay that is below market value. Additionally, the company stated that Voyager’s proposed restructuring would cancel stock interests at the moment. It would be detrimental to the company’s restructuring efforts if these individuals left. These workers were referred to as «non-insider» or non-executive workers. The creditors argue that even if these individuals moved for better opportunities, they should be simple to replace, given the industry’s recent layoffs.

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