Film Review: "Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King" (2022).

"Greed is a matter of life and death" in Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King. This documentary film directed by Luke Sewell. When the young founder of a collapsing cryptocurrency exchange does unexpectedly, irate investors suspect there's more to his death than meets the eye.

Founded in November 2013, Canada's largest cryptocurrency exchange Quadriga Fintech Solutions, the owner and operator of QuadrigaCX was founded in Vancouver, British Columbia by Gerald Cotten and Michael Patryn. On 9 December 2018, Cotten died after traveling to India. Up to C$250 million (US$190 million) in cryptocurrency owed to one hundred and fifteen thousand customers was missing or could not be accessed because only Cotten held the password to off-line cold wallets. Quadriga likely never invested the funds entrusted to it, according to Chainalysis, a cryptocurrency tracking firm. Either the funds were never received or quickly went missing. Ernst & Young was appointed as an independent monitor while Quadriga was granted temporary legal protection from its creditors under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act. In early April 2019 the firm entered bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act as the possibility of a successful reorganization appeared to be remote. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were reportedly investigating the company. Lawyers for the customers of the exchange have asked that Cotten's body be exhumed. In early February 2019, the exchange ceased operations and the company filed for bankruptcy with C$215.7 million in liabilities and about C$28 million in assets. Additionally, Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Michael J. Wood ordered a "30-day stay that precludes filing of claims against Quadriga", which is a temporary legal protection from its creditors under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, a legal status that allows insolvent corporations to restructure their business and financial affairs. Meanwhile, in order to manage the finances of the company during the process, a third-party monitor, Ernst & Young, was appointed. In early February, Ernst & Young reported that C$468,675 (US$354,300) of bitcoin were "inadvertently" sent to an inaccessible cold wallet. In early March, Justice Wood extended Quadriga's court protection to 23 April. He appointed Peter Wedlake of Grant Thornton to be chief restructuring officer. Quadriga's customers are owed C$260 million in cryptocurrency and cash. A C$24.7 million disbursement fund has been planned with C$300,000 to go to Cotten's widow, Jennifer Robertson, who advanced that amount to start the court proceedings, C$200,000 will go to Ernst & Young and another C$250,000 to its lawyers, C$229,842 will go to Quadriga's lawyers and C$17,000 to independent contractors. Quadriga's lawyer, the firm Stewart McKelvey, withdrew from the case due to a potential conflict of interest.

How do you make Bitcoin cinematic? Netflix and director Luke Sewell resorts to some rather standard practices -- fleeting graphics, subtitles and numbers -- but the strength of the movie is its interviewees. Its director, Luke Sewell, has sufficient confidence in the story and lays out many of the juicy bits as the opening credits roll.

Simon says Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King receives: