A leaked email exchange between Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Chairman Martin Gruenberg and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has shed light on SBF’s political ties and his intentions to get the crypto exchange federally regulated.
The email, mediated by former CFTC commissioner Mark Wetjen, showed SBF’s request for a meeting with Gruenberg in June 2022, nearly six months before FTX filed for bankruptcy and SBF resigned as CEO.
SBF’s political ties uncovered amid investigations
FTX’s collapse led to investigations into its misappropriation of users’ funds, and recent court documents revealed that SBF and five other former FTX and Alameda Research executives received $3.2 billion in payments and loans from FTX-linked entities.
SBF reportedly received the lion’s share of the funds, receiving $2.2 billion. The investigations also uncovered SBF’s political ties, with the FDIC confirming that the chairman met SBF as part of “routine courtesy visits with leaders of financial firms and institutions.”
FTX’s new management started conducting internal investigations to track missing funds, while debtors in FTX’s bankruptcy case reported that the various company silos had more than $4 billion in scheduled assets as of November 2022.
In a March 17 filing with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, FTX debtors submitted a presentation to the committee of unsecured creditors on its statement of financial affairs, which detailed the scheduled assets and claims of the company.
West Realm Shires silo, which includes FTX US and Ledger X, FTX.com, Alameda Research, and FTX Ventures had roughly $4.8 billion in scheduled assets and $11.6 billion in scheduled claims.
The data was based on petitioning financials from the four silos in November 2022. Alameda held the majority of the scheduled assets at roughly $2.6 billion but had “potentially material claims that have been filed as undetermined,” while claims from FTX Ventures were undetermined.
The aftermath of FTX’s collapse
FTX’s collapse has sent shockwaves throughout the crypto industry, raising concerns about the lack of regulation and accountability in the sector.
The revelations about SBF’s political ties and alleged misappropriation of users’ funds have further fueled calls for increased regulatory oversight of crypto exchanges.
In the wake of FTX’s collapse, SBF has stepped down as CEO, and the exchange’s new management is working to restore users’ confidence in the platform.
However, the damage has already been done, and the fallout from FTX’s collapse is likely to be felt for years to come. As the crypto industry continues to evolve, it remains to be seen whether regulators will step in to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.
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