--- title: "Did a Crypto CEO Fake His Own Death to Abscond With $190 Million?" description: "Now the drama is escalating, with some observers suggesting that QuadrigaCX CEO Gerald Cotten faked his own death to abscond with a pile of digital cash." date: "2019-02-05" modified: "2019-02-07" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/growing-suspicion-crypto-ceo-faked-death" categories: - "Blockchain" - "Cryptocurrency" - "Future Society" tags: - "bitcoin" - "cryptocurrency" - "gerald cotten" - "quidrigacx" --- # Did a Crypto CEO Fake His Own Death to Abscond With $190 Million? ![Now the drama is escalating, with some observers suggesting that QuadrigaCX CEO Gerald Cotten faked his own death to abscond with a pile of digital cash.]() *\Image: K-H. Leuders/Kottaym/Tag Hartman-Simkins\* ## The Departed When the CEO of a bank dies, the bank's assets and holdings don't get buried along with them. But when it comes to cryptocurrency exchanges — places where you can trade your real-world money for digital currencies like Bitcoin — things work differently. At least, that was the case for Vancouver-based exchange QuadrigaCX. The exchange was plunged into turmoil when the ostensible widow of its CEO, 30-year-old Gerald Cotten, announced that her husband [had passed away]() in India while building an orphanage — and took the passwords to crypto holdings worth about $190 million to the grave. Now the drama is escalating, with some observers suggesting that Cotten faked his own death to abscond with the cash. ## Cold Wallet Case CoinDesk [retrieved Cotten's death certificate]() from officials in India, but users on Reddit and Twitter [raised red flags](), calling the legitimacy of Cotten's death into question — and pointing out that in parts of India, it's [possible to buy a death certificate](). The saga has also angered QuadrigaCX clients who had money tied up in the exchange, as well as cryptocurrency observers. Jesse Powell, the CEO of rival crypto exchange KrakenFX, [took to Twitter]() on Saturday, where he called the story of Cotten's death "bizarre and, frankly, unbelievable." Earlier today, a Canadian court [approved QuadrigaCX's request for a stay]() of 30 days — a period of time during which no lawsuits can be made against the exchange. Cotten's encrypted laptop will also soon fall in the hands of court-appointed lawyers working for creditors, [Canadian news reports](). Whether or not the laptop will hold the secret key to unlock QuadrigaCX's accounts is unclear. ## Bankruptcy Protection QuadrigaCX has a pretty daunting task ahead of it: recover the keys to hundreds of millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrency. The company has [filed for bankruptcy protection](), as it's frantically trying to recover the keys. "For the past weeks, we have worked extensively to address our liquidity issues, which include attempting to locate and secure our very significant cryptocurrency reserves held in cold wallets," reads a black-on-white message that replaced the [company's entire homepage](). A key question is why there was no backup. What series of actions led to QuadrigaCX's quandary? One clear takeaway from the unfolding story: it's yet another cautionary tale about the regulatory vacuum in the cryptocurrency industry. **READ MORE:** [Quadriga in court to seek bankruptcy protection while it searches for $250M in cryptocurrency]() \[*CBC*\] ***More on QuadrigaCX:*** - *[Crypto Site Loses $137 Million in Dead Founder's Encrypted Wallet]()* - *[Did a Crypto CEO Fake His Own Death? The Great Quadriga Conspiracy, Day 6]()* - *[Indian Hospital Fires Back at Rumors That Crypto CEO Faked Death]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()