Crypto wallet firm Exodus sues W3C and its CEO Garth Howat, seeking to compel $175M acquisition

Policy Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Crypto wallet firm Exodus sues W3C and its CEO Garth Howat, seeking to compel $175M acquisition A lawsuit in the Delaware Court of Chancery seeks to compel Howat to comply with obligations under the November 24, 2025 Stock Purchase Agreement. By Ian Allison | Edited by Stephen Alpher Apr 13, 2026, 7:04 p.m. Make preferred on The Baanx team (Baanx) (2024) What to know : Howat and W3C accepted $80 million worth of loans from Exodus upon signing the deal, with $10 million given to Howat personally, who then declared that they did not need to repay these loans, said the lawsuit. Howat and company attempted to pilfer millions of dollars from one of their own subsidiaries, the lawsuit claims. Listed cryptocurrency firm Exodus Movement (EXOD) is suing W3C, the parent company of crypto card and payments specialists Baanx and Monovate, and its chief executive, Garth Howat, to complete its $175 million acquisition of W3C , agreed in November of last year. A lawsuit in the Delaware Court of Chancery seeks to compel Howat to comply with obligations under the November 24, 2025 Stock Purchase Agreement. Howat and W3C accepted $80 million worth of loans from Exodus upon signing the deal, with $10 million given to Howat personally, who then declared that they did not need to repay these loans, according to the lawsuit. “Defendants Garth Howat and W3C are engaged in a blatant, reckless, and improper campaign to escape closing a transaction for the sale of W3C to Exodus that they had promised to complete in a binding agreement,” the lawsuit states. “They have attempted to pilfer millions of dollars from one of their own subsidiaries. They have falsely backdated documents filed with government authorities. They have purported to summarily dismiss entire boards of directors, as well as the CEO and CFO of their key operating entity, and replace them with lackeys of their choosing, despite being precluded from doing so by the binding agreement,” it said. Howat did not immediately respond to a request for comment. W3C companies Baanx and Monovate were behind the Crypto Life digital asset cards business that worked with the likes of Mastercard and MetaMask. JP Richardson, CEO and Co-founder of Exodus commented, “We have a binding agreement with W3C and expect it to be fully honored. We’re confident in the path forward and anticipate a swift resolution.” More For You White House crypto adviser Witt says other Clarity Act hurdles being cleared By Jesse Hamilton | Edited by Nikhilesh De 29 minutes ago Patrick Witt told CoinDesk that a recent compromise on stablecoin yield should hold as the Senate tries to advance its crypto bill, even as bankers continue warnings. What to know : Patrick Witt, the chief White House official in the trenches on advancing the Clarity Act, said that the negotiation has been trying to solve other concerns even as banks and crypto firms continued to hash out their stablecoin yield differences. If the current compromise in the Senate holds, the rest... Read full story Latest Crypto News White House crypto adviser Witt says other Clarity Act hurdles being cleared 29 minutes ago U.S. SEC says software allowing crypto wallet transactions not considered broker 1 hour ago Crypto exchange Kraken targeted in extortion attempt but says there was no breach and no client funds at risk 3 hours ago Circle CEO says he won’t freeze USDC without a court order even as hackers walk away with millions 3 hours ago Bankers rebuff White House claim that stablecoin yield doesn't threaten deposits 3 hours ago Bitcoin moves off lowest levels as worst of weekend fears slip away 4 hours ago Top Stories Bitmine's Tom Lee calls ether 'the wartime store of value' as holdings hit 4.87 million tokens 5 hours ago Nearly $120 million of XRP just moved to Coinbase in whale transaction 5 hours ago Strategy buys 13,927 bitcoin for $1 billion, entirely through STRC 7 hours ago Super PAC tied to Tether makes first ad buy from firm founded by Tether's U.S. CEO Apr 12, 2026