Prosecutors sell remaining crypto from bankrupt trading site Knaken for €2.2 million

Despite the earlier losses, Ronald J. continued attracting new customers and signed sponsorship deals with Dutch soccer clubs Feyenoord, Sparta, Heracles, Heerenveen and, briefly, Ajax. A customer identified only as Henk, who first reported problems to Rijnmond at the end of May, said: “If those clubs go into business with such a party then you think it’s fine. So not, it turns out. I find that really scandalous.”

Knaken continued selling certificates and accepting loans from customers while failing to report its financial problems to the Dutch central bank, De Nederlandsche Bank. A former Knaken director who is not Ronald J. was asked not to make contact. The court declared Knaken bankrupt on July 16, citing the financial problems among other factors.

Shortly before the bankruptcy, prosecutors seized the remaining cryptocurrency and ordered it sold, producing the 2.2 million euros. A lawyer for one victim questioned whether authorities had the right to do so, saying: “Whose was that crypto? Very bluntly I take as example: can you imagine the garage where your car is goes bankrupt and your car is sold and you see nothing of it?”

Prosecutors said they had valid reasons but declined to detail them. The sale appears based on Article 117 of the Dutch Code of Criminal Procedure, which allows the sale of seized goods that are subject to depreciation. Hamm said he understood the decision: “The value of cryptocurrency is completely unpredictable. Suppose that currency was not sold and became less valuable,” he said, “then the problem would have been even bigger.”

The 2.2 million euros is currently the only money in the bankruptcy estate. “We are looking if more can be made of it, if elsewhere still money stands or people still owe money to Knaken or if there are still possessions that can be sold,” Hamm said. “Other creditors than the customers there are hardly any, maybe still a bit of payroll tax that must be paid.”

Customers still have time to submit claims with supporting evidence to the trustee. Hamm must also determine whether Knaken’s director complied with applicable rules. Prosecutors are investigating possible criminal offenses.

Ronald J. is still seeking a settlement with creditors that could speed the bankruptcy process. “We will see if something comes of that,” Hamm said.

In response to Hamm’s comments, Ronald J. said he is working on a creditors’ agreement. “I still want to do what I planned. Make customers a proposal, with which they hopefully agree.”

He rejected several of Hamm’s statements. On the 10 million to 12 million euro figure, Ronald J. said: “I don’t recognize the amount and I can’t place it. I also don’t know how this amount is composed.”

Knaken operated as a broker, he said: “A customer gave a buy order, that order was executed against the then applicable price and the customer got the corresponding position in his account. There was no collective result in which was shared.”

He called Hamm’s suggestion that the money was not actually invested in cryptocurrency “outright incorrect and damaging.” “Every order placed via Knaken is executed at our liquidity provider and is provided with an order-ID with the executed price level and timestamp. That administration is complete and per order can be checked against the customer order in the system,” Ronald J. said.

He did not deny a shortfall but disputed any link between that shortfall and claims that cryptocurrency was not purchased. “Those two things stand separate. The purchases are executed and documented,” he said.

Funds did not always go into a single Knaken account, Ronald J. added: “This is incorrect for the period from November 2022. From that moment Knaken had a separate IBAN exclusively for customer funds. From 2025, incoming customer funds were deposited on the account of a foundation established for that. This separation can be unambiguously established from the bank administration and the statutes of the foundation.”

Knaken held positions for customers in about 145 different cryptocurrencies, he said. “For the vast majority of those the positions noted in customer accounts were fully covered by actually held crypto. I thus do not deny that there was an uncovered part. What I dispute is the generalization.”

Regarding the 2.3 million euros transferred to the marketing company, Ronald J. said: “That BV is established to avoid mixing of tasks and not get problems with the Dutch Central Bank.” He provided Rijnmond with multiple years of documents from the company and its payment account. Those records do not show that he enriched himself or that money, such as salary, was transferred to him, according to the documents.

Buyers of Knaken certificates are not victims of the bankruptcy, Ronald J. said: “They hold an interest in goSettle B.V., which falls outside this bankruptcy. They are not by definition their full investment lost.”