© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The FTX logo is seen at the entrance to the FTX Arena in Miami, Florida, U.S., November 12, 2022. REUTERS/Marco Bello
By Dietrich Knauth
(Reuters) – Bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX said in a report to creditors on Tuesday that around $415 million worth of cryptocurrency had been stolen as a result of hacks.
Some $323 million worth of cryptocurrency had been hacked from FTX’s international exchange and $90 million from its US exchange since it filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11, CEO John Ray said in a separate statement Tuesday.
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been accused of stealing billions of dollars from FTX clients to pay off debts incurred by his crypto-focused hedge fund, Alameda Research. Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to the fraud charges.
FTX told a bankruptcy judge in Delaware last week that it had recovered more than $5 billion in crypto, cash, and liquid securities, nine weeks after filing for bankruptcy.
The company provided additional details on Tuesday, saying it had recovered $1.7 billion in cash, $3.5 billion in liquid cryptocurrency and $300 million in liquid securities.
FTX did not provide an estimate of total liabilities, but said it had identified major significant shortcomings in its international and US crypto exchanges.
“We are making progress in our efforts to maximize recoveries, and it has taken a Herculean investigative effort by our team to uncover this preliminary information,” Ray said in the statement.
Crypto assets recovered to date include $685 million in , $529 million in FTX’s proprietary FTT token, and $268 million in bitcoin, based on cryptocurrency prices on November 11, 2022. Solana, who was lauded by Bankman-Fried, lost most of its value in 2022.
During FTX’s initial investigation into the attacks on its system, it discovered a November seizure of assets by the Bahamas Securities and Exchange Commission, sparking a dispute between FTX’s US-based bankruptcy team. and Bahamian regulators.
The two sides settled their differences in January and Ray said Tuesday that the Bahamian government had $426 million for creditors.
Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Davis addressed the dispute during an event Tuesday at the Atlantic Council in Washington, saying Ray’s team “realized” and accepted that the seizure of Bahamian assets “was appropriate.” and may have saved the day for many of the investors in FTX.”
