Exodus Movement, a listed cryptocurrency firm, has taken legal action against W3C, the parent company of Baanx and Monovate, and its CEO Garth Howat, in an effort to finalize the $175 million acquisition agreed upon in November of the previous year. The lawsuit, filed in the Delaware Court of Chancery, seeks to compel Howat to adhere to the obligations stipulated in the November 24, 2025 Stock Purchase Agreement. Upon signing the deal, Howat and W3C received $80 million in loans from Exodus, with $10 million allocated to Howat personally, who subsequently claimed that repayment was not necessary, as alleged in the lawsuit. The lawsuit asserts that Howat and W3C are engaged in a deliberate attempt to evade fulfilling the terms of the binding agreement, citing actions such as the manipulation of documents filed with government authorities and the unauthorized dismissal and replacement of key personnel.
In response to the allegations, Howat has yet to provide a comment. Notably, W3C's subsidiaries Baanx and Monovate were instrumental in the development of the Crypto Life digital asset cards business, which collaborated with prominent partners like Mastercard and MetaMask. Exodus CEO and Co-founder JP Richardson stated, 'We have a binding agreement in place with W3C and expect it to be fully honored.
We are confident in our position and anticipate a swift resolution to this matter.'