The US arm of Binance is set to launch a fresh bid to buy bankrupt crypto lending platform, Voyager Digital, according to reports from Coindesk.

Citing a source “familiar with the plans”, the bid comes amidst a challenging period for the global crypto industry, which has been left reeling after the whirlwind collapse of FTX.

A previous auction for Voyager Digital in September saw FTX outbid Binance, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal at the time. The $1.42bn FTX bid was hailed as a saving grace for the stricken platform.

However, in the wake of the platform’s collapse, Voyager postponed the deal and claimed it was seeking bids from alternative sources.

Voyager Digital

Voyager Digital collapsed in July after the high-profile crash of the Luna and TerraUSD crypto tokens at the beginning of the year.

The incident sent shockwaves throughout the crypto landscape and had significant knock-on effects, leading to the collapse of Three Arrows Capital, a prominent crypto hedge fund.

The renewed Binance bid follows an announcement earlier this week that the firm planned to launch a recovery fund to support the industry.

To reduce further cascading negative effects of FTX, Binance is forming an industry recovery fund, to help projects who are otherwise strong, but in a liquidity crisis. More details to come soon. In the meantime, please contact Binance Labs if you think you qualify. 1/2

— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) November 14, 2022

In a statement via social media on Tuesday, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said: “To reduce further cascading negative effects of FTX, Binance is forming an industry recovery fund, to help projects who are otherwise strong, but in a liquidity crisis.

“More details to come soon.”

‘White Knight’ of Crypto

While rumours of the Binance bid highlight a glimmer of hope for an otherwise struggling industry, a statement from Binance chief communications officer Patrick Hillmann claimed the firm is “not looking to be the ‘white knight’ of crypto.”

Hillmann told Coindesk: “There are no Luke Skywalkers or Darth Vaders in business. This is a company, with the most to lose as it’s market leader, looking around to see where we can help bolster the industry through a black swan event.”

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