Here's a thought - Bitfinex has been one of the largest exchange. Today's coinmarketcap says they had 500 million in volume. Assuming 0.11% charge that is nearly 50k in fees today or 15 million a month. And this is just in bitcoin. I assume that they are doing equally good in other pairs too. So, if someone is funding them with an eye to become the biggest player in the market like Uber, Amazon etc, this might be feasible.

Or they can be taking out a line of credit on the future cash flows from the exchange fees.

Without knowing the full picture this might be just speculation on whether they have the money.

The unwinding might come from their funding (or line of credit) running out. At least that is my theory.

What other reasons can cause their downfall?