(Reuters) – Silvergate Capital shares plummeted 28% late on Wednesday after the cryptocurrency-focused bank warned it was delaying its annual report and said it was evaluating its ability to operate as a going concern.
Silvergate had been trying to ease investor concerns over its future after reporting a $1 billion loss for the fourth quarter in the wake of crypto exchange FTX’s bankruptcy, which shook confidence in the digital asset sector.
Federal prosecutors in Washington are probing Silvergate and its dealings with FTX and Alameda Research. In January, three U.S. senators asked Silvergate for details about its risk management practices and its dealings with FTX.
“The Company is currently analyzing certain regulatory and other inquiries and investigations that are pending with respect to the Company,” Silvergate wrote in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday.
Silvergate said it sold additional debt securities in January and February and that it expects further losses related to impaired securities, adding it could be “less than well-capitalized.”
Additionally, “the Company is evaluating the impact that these subsequent events have on its ability to continue as a going concern for the twelve months following the issuance of its financial statements,” according to the filing.
Silvergate said it does not expect to file its report by an extension date of March 16.
Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance had secret access to an account at Silvergate belonging to its purportedly independent U.S. partner and transferred large sums of money from the account to a trading firm managed by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, Reuters reported earlier this month.
Last at $9.40 in extended trade, Silvergate’s stock has plummeted about 96% from its record high close in November 2021.
(Reporting by Noel Randewich; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
