Bahamas Seize $3.5 Billion Crypto Assets From FTX

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FTX founder Babkman Fried (on arrival in New York): At least some of the money is still there

Photo Credit: IMAGO/Louis Lanzano / IMAGO/UPI Photo

Since the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange and the transfer of customer funds to the Alameda hedge fund, FTX customers have feared for their money.

Now they are hoping that they will see at least part of their money again: According to a report by Bloomberg, the authorities in the Bahamas have seized crypto assets worth around $3.5 billion.

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who was extradited from the Bahamas to the US and is now incarcerated in the US, asked the Bahamas authorities to seize the crypto assets shortly after FTX filed for bankruptcy.

Immediately after the bankruptcy filing, tokens worth $372 million were stolen by a hacker attack.

Bankman-Fried feared that more tokens would be stolen and therefore informed the authorities about the additional value of $3.5 billion.

These were then secured.

There was a risk of an "imminent theft" of the tokens, the Bahamas financial regulator said in a statement dated December 29.

The $3.5 billion crypto assets will be handed over to their owners once the courts and FTX's bankruptcy trustee approve, it said.

The bankruptcy trustee and current CEO of FTX, John Ray, had warned in early December that customers of FTX will lose some of their deposits.

Foreign customers in particular would have fewer opportunities than customers in the USA.

Many foreign customers want to remain anonymous

A group of overseas FTX clients, meanwhile, have asked a US court to keep their names secret, contrary to bankruptcy practice.

"Holders of cryptocurrencies are particularly vulnerable to fraud and theft," said a letter to Judge John Dorsey filed Thursday night.

FTX has also asked for an exception.

The US Department of Justice and media such as the "New York Times" and the "Wall Street Journal", on the other hand, are demanding disclosure.

Dorsey has scheduled a hearing on the issue for January 11th.

FTX filed for bankruptcy protection on Nov. 11 after customers withdrew funds en masse in response to the covert move of $10 billion in deposits.

Founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried resigned as boss the same day.

He is on trial in the US over fraud allegations, which he denies.

The collapse of FTX has rocked the crypto world.

la with Reuters