The FTX estate, responsible for managing the defunct exchange’s bankruptcy, has auctioned off the last of its heavily discounted Solana (SOL) tokens.
The tokens were sold to Pantera Capital and Figure Markets at a significantly reduced price as part of efforts to reimburse creditors and former clients.
FTX Sold $2.6 Billion Worth Of Solana Token (SOL)
The estate of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX concludes sales of a $2.6 billion trove of discounted Solana tokens, with Figure Markets and Pantera among the buyers https://t.co/qv0UrHcxxY
— Bloomberg Crypto (@crypto) May 24, 2024
In a bid to compensate creditors and former clients, the FTX estate sold the last of its Solana tokens, valued at $2.6 billion, to Pantera Capital and Figure Markets. The tokens were sold at $102 per token, well below the current market price of $168. Figure Markets acquired 800,000 SOL tokens, while Pantera Capital obtained the remaining lot.
A four-year vesting schedule for the tokens will be implemented as part of the agreement with the purchasers. This structured release aims to mitigate potential market impacts from the large transaction.
The FTX bankruptcy estate has recovered $7.3 billion in assets so far. However, the recovery efforts have not been without controversy.
Sunil Kavuri, a creditor leading the FTX creditor community, criticized the estate’s decision to sell assets at such deep discounts. He argued that the digital assets should have been returned to the creditors and clients directly rather than sold cheaply.
Kavuri stated,
“Sullivan & Cromwell has trampled over our property rights. They have liquidated billions of dollars of crypto assets. There’s a token S&C sold at 11 cents; it’s now trading at two dollars. FTX had $10 billion in Solana tokens — they sold it at a 70% discount.”
His sentiments reflect broader frustrations among those affected by the FTX collapse, who have long been critical of the actions taken by the estate’s bankruptcy lawyers, Sullivan & Cromwell. The court ordered an independent investigation into Sullivan & Cromwell’s role in the bankruptcy proceedings, ultimately clearing them of collusion with FTX. Despite this, criticisms persist regarding the handling of asset sales.
Following the announcement of the bankruptcy auctions, SOL’s price dropped by 4%, but the alternative layer-1 network continues to show strong price performance. SOL is currently on an uptrend that began in November 2023, reaching a high of $210.
Uncovering More Corruption Surrounding FTX
According to an independent examiner’s report by Robert Cleary, FTX Group allegedly paid over $25 million in hush money to seven whistleblowers before the crypto exchange’s collapse in November 2022.
The report revealed that FTX settled claims with whistleblowers who raised concerns about various improprieties, including systemic issues and misleading regulators. These settlements, handled primarily by attorney Daniel Friedberg, ranged from $1.8 million to $16 million.
For instance, one whistleblower received $16 million after alleging the exchange misled regulators and lacked proper corporate structure, while another, who worked at Alameda Research for less than three months, received $2 million for raising concerns about regulatory and governance issues.
Notably, US prosecutors are seeking a 5—to 7-year sentence for former FTX executive Ryan Salame, who pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations and operating an illegal money-transmitting business during his tenure as CEO of FTX’s Bahamian subsidiary.
Salame’s charges include orchestrating a scheme allowing customers to use U.S.-based bank accounts without federal compliance and participating in illegal political donations amounting to over $100 million.
Prosecutors argue that his offenses are significant, involving more than $1 billion in unlicensed transactions, and call for a substantial sentence to ensure appropriate punishment and deter future offenses.
The UK government’s Charity Commission investigation also recently found that Effective Ventures Foundation, an FTX-funded charity, acted diligently and quickly to protect its funds after FTX’s collapse.
Following FTX’s collapse, Effective Ventures disclosed its connections to the exchange, prompting a regulatory probe. The charity repaid $4.3 million to the FTX estate, matching the total amount it received from FTX and its foundation in 2022.
Effective Ventures’ interim CEO, Zachary Robinson, stated that EV UK and EV US collectively repaid $26.8 million to the FTX estate, covering all funds received.
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