In brief
- The Core Foundation alleged that Maple Finance has misused confidential information obtained via a partnership to create a rival Bitcoin yield product.
- The two organizations collaborated earlier this year to create Bitcoin yield product, IstBTC.
- Maple Finance denies the allegations and claims its broader business remains unaffected by the dispute.
The Core Foundation has secured an injunction against Maple Finance, as the nonprofit alleges that Maple was misusing confidential information to create a competing Bitcoin yield product following a previous collaboration.
The pair teamed up earlier this year to develop a Bitcoin yield product called IstBTC. The Core Foundation claims that Maple has used the collaborative work, while still taking the Foundation’s money, to create a “rival product” called syrupBTC.
This would be in direct violation of the 24-month exclusivity clause, the nonprofit stated on X, and the Core Foundation has issued a notice of termination of the underlying agreements.
“Core Foundation made significant financial and resource-intensive investments in the technical development, marketing, promotion, and subsidies of the product,” the Core Foundation’s statement said. “By mid-2025, it is alleged that Maple began misusing Core Foundation’s confidential information and work product while continuing to accept Core Foundation’s capital and resources in order to develop syrupBTC.”
Maple Finance has denied the allegations, saying that Core Foundation’s actions are “directly against lender interests.” It also claimed that its “broader business operations” remain unaffected by the dispute.
Maple Finance is an on-chain asset management firm founded in 2019. Its SYRUP token is the 192nd largest crypto token at a market capitalization of $394 million, according to CoinGecko, despite a 7.7% daily drop in value. It has removed IstBTC from its website.
The Core Foundation aids in the development of Core Network, a blockchain that allows users to interact with a range of crypto products backed by Bitcoin.
The Cayman Islands court said there is a “sensible factual basis” for the complaint, which satisfied the judge to grant an injunction. An injunction requires a party to either do or stop doing something; in this case, the development of the alleged rival Bitcoin yield product.
“Core Foundation will take this legal action as far as necessary to protect the community,” the Core Foundation’s statement finished. “The injunction provides validation for Core Foundation’s position, and we look forward to a final resolution and to getting back to building.”
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