With a Dubai court freezing $456 million tied to TrueUSD’s reserves, First Digital Trust said it is backing Techteryx’s efforts to recover the funds after they became illiquid in 2023 following transfers to complex investment structures linked to Aria Group, a shortfall that required an emergency bailout from Justin Sun to keep the stablecoin afloat.
“We welcome any step that helps Techteryx pursue recovery of its funds from the Aria units,” First Digital’s Vincent Chok said in an email to CoinDesk. “We understand that the court has ordered Aria to provide information about the assets and we look forward to seeing the results of this process.”
FDT was not a party to the case in Dubai.
The connection between FDT and Aria stems from FDT’s previous role as administrator of TrueUSD’s reserves, which it held on behalf of Techteryx.
As CoinDesk reported earlier this year, Techteryx said it instructed FDT to place the funds in the Aria Commodity Finance Fund, a Cayman Islands vehicle. Litigation in Hong Kong later alleged that around $456 million was instead transferred to Aria Commodities DMCC, a separate Dubai-based Aria unit, with the assets tied up in illiquid trade finance positions.
The court order from Dubai’s Digital Economy Court froze these funds.
FDT CEO Vincent Chok told CoinDesk that the firm acted solely as a fiduciary intermediary and conducted all transactions exactly as directed by Techteryx and its representatives.
Separately, FDT continues to pursue a defamation suit against Sun, which claimed in April that the trustee is “effectively insolvent,” prompting FDT’s stablecoin, FDUSD, to be briefly delisted.
“There are no public updates to share at this stage,” Chok told CoinDesk.
