Exodus Movement, a publicly traded cryptocurrency firm, has initiated 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 fulfill his obligations as outlined in the November 24, 2025 Stock Purchase Agreement.
Upon signing the deal, Howat and W3C received $80 million in loans from Exodus, with Howat personally receiving $10 million, which he subsequently claimed did not need to be repaid, according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that Howat and W3C are attempting to evade their commitment to the acquisition, citing a series of improper actions, including the attempted misappropriation of millions of dollars from a subsidiary, falsification of documents, and unauthorized changes to the boards of directors and executive leadership.
In response to the allegations, 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.'