Court Says ‘Serious Issue to Be Tried’

While denying any wrongdoing, Maple said that it plans to pursue available remedies aggressively to ensure Core is held responsible.

Core Foundation has issued a detailed statement commenting on its dispute with Maple Finance after the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands granted an injunction against Maple over alleged breaches of commercial agreements related to the development of lstBTC, a Core-powered liquid-staked Bitcoin token.

The injunction was granted after the Court found a “serious issue to be tried” regarding Maple’s alleged misuse of Core Foundation’s confidential information and breach of a 24-month exclusivity clause. Under the order, Maple is prohibited from launching or promoting syrupBTC, its allegedly competing product, and from dealing in CORE tokens without prior written consent pending arbitration.

Partnership Gone Wrong

According to Core Foundation, the partnership began in early 2025, and both parties collaborated on lstBTC, a Bitcoin yield product designed to keep BTC securely custodied at firms like BitGo. Core said it invested significant financial and technical resources into development, marketing, and subsidies, and noted that the partnership’s public launch at Consensus Hong Kong in February 2025 was well received.

At that time, Maple Finance reportedly managed less than $500 million in assets, and Core stated that early revenue and traction from the Bitcoin Yield product beginning in April 2025 contributed to Maple’s rapid growth. Core alleged that by mid-2025, Maple began using its confidential information and work product while simultaneously accepting Core’s resources to develop syrupBTC, which it considers a directly competitive product in breach of exclusivity.

In a judgment dated September 26 and published on October 30 of this year, Justice Jalil Asif KC held that damages would not be an adequate remedy due to the risk of Maple dealing in or shedding CORE tokens and the potential head start Maple would gain by launching its competing offering.

Core Foundation also stated that Maple had brought over $150 million in Bitcoin to the early OTC version of the yield product, and that, based on Maple’s representations, the Bitcoin was expected to be held in fully bankruptcy-remote segregated portfolios at reputable custodians.

It added that the BTC Yield product included CORE price protection via third-party put options, and that it had paid out millions of dollars on these protections until Maple’s alleged breaches, at which point Core sought the injunction and terminated the agreements. Core Foundation said Maple has since indicated it must declare an impairment affecting Bitcoin lenders, but Core said it is unclear why Maple cannot return the Bitcoin or whether Maple has the right to impair it, while citing its understanding that the assets were held with licensed custodians.

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Core described Maple’s position as concerning and said it is pursuing legal action.

Response

In response, Maple Finance said it “stands firmly in defense of lender rights” and stressed that there is no impact on its broader business operations. The on-chain asset manager denied any wrongdoing and tweeted,

“Core Foundation’s actions are directly against lender interests. Maple denies any allegations of wrongdoing on its part and will be pursuing all available remedies aggressively to ensure Core Foundation is held responsible for the consequences of their actions.”