
Exodus Movement Sues W3C And CEO Garth Howat To Enforce $175M Acquisition Deal
Key Takeaways
- Exodus Movement filed suit to force W3C to close the $175M acquisition.
- W3C's Monavate and Baanx assets are targeted as part of the purchase.
- Filed in Delaware Court of Chancery on April 13, 2026.
Exodus Sues W3C
Exodus Movement filed a lawsuit to compel W3C and CEO Garth Howat to complete their $175 million acquisition of W3C.
“Crypto wallet firm Exodus sues W3C and its CEO Garth Howat, seeking to compel $175M acquisition A lawsuit in the Delaware Court of Chancery seeks to compel Howat to comply with obligations under the November 24, 2025 Stock Purchase Agreement”
The suit alleges Howat and W3C accepted $80 million in loans from Exodus, with $10 million given to Howat personally.

The lawsuit accuses Howat and W3C of engaging in a blatant, reckless, and improper campaign to escape closing.
They attempted to pilfer millions from one of their own subsidiaries and falsely backdated documents.
Exodus CEO JP Richardson said, We have a binding agreement with W3C and expect it to be fully honored.
Loan Dispute and Regulatory Clearance
Exodus declared the loans provided to W3C payable on demand and exercised rights under the related loan security.
The company obtained approvals from the UK Financial Conduct Authority needed to close the acquisition.

The lawsuit marks an escalation after W3C did not proceed to closing on the agreed timetable.
Management plans to provide an update at The Exodus Summit on May 1, 2026.
TipRanks noted that EXOD is rated a Buy with a $15.00 price target.
Strategic Importance
The acquisition of W3C's assets is strategically important for Exodus's expansion in payments and digital asset services.
“Lawsuit drives Exodus (NYSE: EXOD) push to close W3C deal Rhea-AI Filing Summary Exodus Movement, Inc”
Monavate is a global payment solutions provider for fintech, Web3, and large enterprises.
Baanx specializes in non-custodial cards and B2B2C digital asset services.
The dispute introduces legal risk and timing uncertainty for stakeholders.
The combined business fits into Exodus's broader self-custodial crypto strategy.
More on Crypto

Federal Reserve Opens 60-Day Comment Period for Limited-Purpose “Skinny” Payment Accounts
13 sources compared

Coinbase Launches Open-Source x402 Payments Protocol After Brooklyn Hackathon With 100 Engineers
11 sources compared

SEC Creates Crypto Task Force Led by Commissioner Hester Peirce Amid June Term Concerns
11 sources compared

Qivalis Adds 25 Banks, Bringing Euro Stablecoin Consortium to 37 Institutions Across 15 Countries
14 sources compared