Echo Base Forms BitMart Creditor Group After $10 Million Restructuring Offer Goes Unanswered

Special situations platform Echo Base has formed an ad hoc committee of claimholders in response to the collapse of cryptocurrency platform BitMart, according to a company announcement. The move follows BitMart's failure to respond to a $10 million funded bankruptcy proposal submitted by Echo Base in early August.

Unanswered Restructuring Proposal

Echo Base stated that it submitted a written proposal to BitMart management on August 6, 2026, offering to commit up to $10 million to sponsor a pre-negotiated bankruptcy filing. The funds were intended to cover professional and administrative costs to ensure an orderly process aimed at maximizing recoveries for customers with frozen assets.

According to the announcement, BitMart, which ceased operations on July 26, 2026, did not respond to the offer. Echo Base also noted that a separate formal demand from an affiliate on August 8, concerning a withdrawal instruction that went unexecuted just before the shutdown, was also ignored.

Legal Strategy and Next Steps

The newly formed committee, which Echo Base says represents a "significant and growing aggregate balance" of frozen assets, has retained legal counsel from Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP and Ashbury Legal PC. The group is evaluating all available remedies, including a potential involuntary insolvency proceeding.

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A key part of the committee's position is its interpretation of BitMart's User Agreement, which it believes indicates that legal title to customer assets was not transferred to the platform. This could have significant implications for the recovery of frozen funds. Roshan Dharia, CEO of Echo Base, urged the defunct exchange to engage, stating, "We have offered capital at risk to fund a court-supervised process... Every week this goes unanswered, the version that remains available narrows."

Market Implications

The formation of a formal creditor group signals an escalation in the effort to recover funds from the collapsed crypto platform. For investors and customers with assets frozen on BitMart, this represents a more organized, legally-backed push for resolution, though the outcome remains uncertain.

The situation highlights the counterparty risks inherent in the digital asset space and the complex legal battles that can follow an exchange's failure. The committee's actions, particularly any move toward an involuntary bankruptcy, will be closely watched as a potential pathway for creditors in similar situations.