The creator of the insolvent cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, addressed persistent questions over FTX’s handling of creditor cash and the veracity of the bankruptcy narrative in a public statement on X(Twitter).
SBF stated in his post that although he disagreed with some aspects of the exchange’s demise, the overall narrative was largely true.
Debtors holding back funds
He said that greater public attention was needed since the debtors were still withholding creditor monies, particularly those related to Mr Ji’s case and Chinese creditors. One of SBF’s first in-depth remarks after his conviction and punishment earlier this year was made in this piece.
Following a tweet by FTX creditor Arush outlining accusations against FTX’s current leadership, headed by CEO John J. Ray III, the conversation was reignited. Ray appeared in court to address allegations of impropriety, self-approved remuneration, and exorbitant legal expenditures during the bankruptcy process, according to Arush’s article.
The FTX bankruptcy was one of the most expensive in U.S. financial history, according to the statement, which also mentioned growing legal and consultancy costs that allegedly topped $1.5 billion and might approach $2.5 billion before conclusion.
Also Read: SBF Says His ‘Biggest Mistake’ Was Handing FTX To New Management
Arush also said that Ray’s group sold several FTX assets, such as LedgerX, FTX Europe, and FTX Japan, at prices much below market rates and without complete authorisation.
He mentioned the alleged approval of bonuses and board payments outside of creditor-approved plans, as well as the use of estate funds to pursue legal actions against former workers and creditors.
Since the FTX estate filed for bankruptcy in 2022, there have been continuous discussions about whether it has managed its residual assets correctly, and these accusations have heightened those discussions.
SBF releases report
In a 15-page paper titled FTX: Where Did The Money Go? that was published after the social media exchange, SBF claimed that FTX was solvent when it filed for bankruptcy in November 2022.
According to court documents cited in the study, FTX and its subsidiary, Alameda Research, had around $25 billion in assets and $13 billion in liabilities at the time.
By late 2025, the cumulative value of those holdings, which include significant shares in Solana, Anthropic, and Robinhood, would have reached around $136 billion, according to SBF’s estimations.
According to the paper, 98% of FTX creditors had received at least 120% of their claim values from the petition date; however, instead of receiving in-kind cryptocurrency, these repayments were converted to US dollars based on November 2022 pricing.
Is SBF getting a pardon?
Polymarket bettors predict a 15% chance that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried will be pardoned this year, after the pardon of Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao a few days earlier.
The Polymarket odds for “Who will Trump pardon in 2025” caused SBF’s odds to rise from 5.6% to 15% in just 12 hours.
Also Read: SBF Team Says FTX Held $136B At Petition Date And “Was Never Bankrupt”, Crypto Community Pushes Back