Datavault Expects $92.2 Million Asset Reduction After Bitcoin Deal Accounting Correction
Key Facts
Datavault AI’s audit committee and management decided on October 20, 2026, not to rely on financial statements covering the third and ninth quarters of 2025, the year ended December 31 of that year, the first quarter of 2026 and the first and second quarters of the same year. The company said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that the decision also applies to related financial communications to the extent they rely on those statements. Datavault estimated that the correction would reduce total assets by varying amounts depending on the statement date, including $92.2 million at the end of 2025. This represents an adjustment to the accounting for the bitcoin transaction with Scilex, not a revaluation of the currency alone. The company said the published figures for the correction’s impact are preliminary and unaudited, and may change as its review continues.
The preliminary expected reductions range from $8.1 million on September 30, 2025, to $92.2 million on December 31, 2025, then $57.1 million on March 31, 2026, and $49 million on June 30, 2026. The differing figures reflect the different measurement dates addressed in the filing; $92.2 million is not a single maximum for all periods. The company said the bitcoin related to the deal “did not meet the criteria for initial recognition as a digital asset of the company.” Instead, a subscription receivable arising from the share issuance should be recognized and presented as a reduction in shareholders’ equity, with cash proceeds from bitcoin transactions deducted from the amount due from Scilex. The company also expects to reverse the impact of gains and losses associated with the cryptocurrency assets in the transaction.
The deal stems from a securities purchase agreement Scilex signed on September 25, 2025, to purchase 15,000,000 common shares and a pre-funded warrant to purchase 263,914,094 shares. The agreed consideration was $150 million payable in bitcoin, based on a spot price cited in the filing of $112,915.52 per bitcoin, or approximately 1,328.43 bitcoin. Datavault said Scilex deposited 1,309.04 bitcoin into its Biconomy wallet through off-chain transfers on September 26 and November 25, 2025. It attributed the 19.39 bitcoin difference to cash advances between the agreement’s signing and final closing. Between September 26, 2025, and January 30, 2026, the company sold 491.431 bitcoin to Scilex for approximately $40.5 million in cash.
In June 2026, Datavault requested a bitcoin withdrawal to an external account, but said it had been unable to complete the withdrawal as of the filing date. Management reassessed the company’s ability to continue as a going concern after it had counted bitcoin balances among its sources of liquidity. It added that collection of amounts due from Scilex remains uncertain. The company said the identification and assessment of errors “is preliminary and unaudited and may be subject to change,” and that it continues to identify necessary adjustments to its income statements, cash flows and disclosures. The review therefore covers the treatment’s impact on statement items related to the transaction, as well as assets and shareholders’ equity.
The filing coincided with sharp moves in Datavault shares, which closed at $0.067 on October 27, 2026, after falling 49.55%, with 249.41 million shares traded. In the next session, the stock rose 31.19% to $0.088, with trading volume of 388.47 million shares, according to Investing.com data. EL7 data showed the stock closed at $0.0719 on October 30, 2026. The company plans to reissue the affected statements but has not set a date. Its review of data and internal controls is also ongoing and could uncover additional errors or delay the release of reports, including the quarterly report for the quarter ended September 30, 2026. The filing also cited risks involving continued Nasdaq listing, financing, collection from Scilex, obtaining Biconomy’s cooperation, and possible regulatory inquiries or litigation.