$150 Million Bitcoin Controversy Crashes a Nasdaq Stock
Shares of Nasdaq-listed Datavault AI crashed almost 50% on Tuesday after a $150 million Bitcoin deal become a main accounting controversy.
The firm revealed that thousands and thousands of {dollars} in Bitcoin had been caught on a crypto alternate, whereas 4 of its monetary studies may not be trusted.
Datavault inventory worth plunged, with roughly 244 million shares altering arms. The inventory now trades about 88% under the value a main investor agreed to pay final yr.
How a $150 Million Bitcoin Deal Went Wrong
The controversy started in September 2025, when painkiller maker Scilex Holding agreed to purchase $150 million in Datavault shares and warrants utilizing Bitcoin.
Just two days earlier, Scilex had agreed to exchange $200 million price of shares in its Semnur Pharmaceuticals subsidiary for Bitcoin. It additionally employed crypto alternate Biconomy to help its plans.
“Biotech is a market we all know nicely,” Scilex CEO Henry Ji stated on the time, promising to information Datavault’s growth.
But the Bitcoin never moved on-chain. Instead, Scilex credited 1,309 BTC to Datavault’s Biconomy account by inside alternate information.
Datavault later offered 491 BTC again to Scilex for $40.5 million. The remaining 818 BTC are nonetheless inaccessible after a withdrawal request made in June.
Investors Face a $92 Million Accounting Shock
According to an October 26 SEC filing, Datavault now says these Bitcoin balances ought to by no means have been recorded as firm property.
Instead, they need to have been handled as cash owed by Scilex, probably lowering beforehand reported property by $92.2 million.
Four monetary statements should be corrected. Datavault can also be reassessing whether or not it has enough assets to proceed working.
“One of the ugliest 8-Ks you’ll ever see,” commented VanEck’s Matthew Sigel.
The findings stay preliminary, and Datavault nonetheless holds a declare in opposition to Scilex. The submitting affords no clarification for the stalled withdrawal.
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