Ousted EtherDEG CEO wants $10M payout

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A court case between the former CEO of EtherDEG, a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange out of the British Virgin Islands (BVI), and the exchange took a twist recently. The executive submitted a request to the court that it authorize a default judgment in his favor that would award him $10 million.

Wengqing Liu was hired as the CEO of EtherDEG in December of 2017 and offered a salary of $125,000 per year. He was also given an equity stake worth 11.25% in the company and unspecified commissions associated with the exchange’s initial coin offering (ICO) in January 2018. However, shortly after the ICO, he was fired for unknown reasons.

Wengqing filed a lawsuit on April 30, but neither the exchange nor its founder, Jun Chen, have responded to the suit or filed any retort. Because of this, asserts the ousted CEO, he’s entitled to have the courts rule in favor of his petition for a default judgment.

To that end, Wengqing is trying to receive compensation he claims to be worth $10 million, as well as another $2.25 million that he conceded could be held by the courts until the final outcome of the case is determined. That money, he argues, is part of the compensation owed from the commissions earned during the ICO.

The courts have thus far denied the claims, stating, “The basis for seeking this amount from EtherDEG for breach of contract is unclear as plaintiff’s annual salary was only $125,000. The claim to compel delivery of stock is not a claim for monetary, damages and this cause of action does not seek unpaid commissions (see Docket. 18 at 1 [‘EtherDEG’s breach of contract caused me to lose at least $10,000,000 in compensation, including but not limited to the destruction of the value of my equity’]).”

The courts also stated that transferring the $2.2 million to any account or accounts controlled by the courts was not feasible. Not only did Wengqing not detail how he expected this to happen, he wasn’t able to provide a solid foundation for why the compensation is in order.

However, the denial doesn’t end Wengqing’s chances. The courts stated that he could revise his explanation regarding why he’s entitled to receive compensation, providing extremely detailed information on the subject.