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FTX Disclosed Related-Party Transactions but Didn’t Name Names

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

The saga of Sam Bankman-Fried‘s bankrupt crypto empire isn’t just about collapsing tokens, missing billions and sunny offshore tax havens; there were also red flags in its books, the Wall Street Journal reported. At the core of FTX Trading Ltd.’s financial statements was a series of related-party transactions. But the company didn’t say who those parties were. On its balance sheet, the largest asset as of Dec. 31 was a “related party receivable” valued at $1.2 billion, or 44% of its assets. Its liabilities included a $362 million “related party payable.” FTX Trading last year paid $250 million, or 25% of its revenue, to an unnamed related party for “software royalties,” as previously reported by The Wall Street Journal, which viewed the documents. As a closely held company, FTX Trading didn’t disclose its financial statements publicly, though they were shared with investors. In a footnote to the financial statements, the company said its “primary shareholder is also the primary shareholder of several related entities which do business with the company.” It didn’t say who the related parties were for any specific transaction it disclosed.

FTX Suggests Sam Bankman-Fried Transferred Assets to Bahamas Government Custody After Bankruptcy: Filing

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

FTX in an emergency court filing yesterday said that evidence suggests Bahamian regulators directed former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to gain “unauthorized access” to FTX systems to obtain digital assets belonging to the company after it had filed for bankruptcy protection, CNBC.com reported. The filing said that Bankman-Fried transferred those assets to the custody of the Bahamian government. It cites an interview published by Vox on Wednesday where Bankman-Fried expresses serious disdain for regulators. “F--- regulators,” he said in the interview. “They make everything worse. They don’t protect customers at all.” “You know what was maybe my biggest single f----p?” he asked. “Chapter 11.” The accusations were made by FTX in a motion in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. In that motion, FTX said the alleged conduct puts “in serious question” a request by Bahamian regulators for recognition as liquidators in the bankruptcy.

FTX Management, Bahamas Gear Up for Fight over Control of Bankruptcy

Submitted by ckanon@abi.org on
Securities regulators in the Bahamas are seeking to control FTX bankruptcy proceedings through the crypto exchange’s locally based subsidiary, challenging the company’s chapter 11 filing in Delaware and setting the stage for a possible venue dispute with its new U.S. management, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. FTX Digital Markets Ltd., the crypto company’s subsidiary based in the Bahamas, filed for chapter 15 in New York bankruptcy court on Tuesday to seek U.S. recognition of Bahamian liquidation proceedings. The action, if successful, could move at least a portion of the legal proceedings over the collapse of FTX from the U.S. bankruptcy courts to local courts in the Bahamas. FTX’s management is likely to fight to keep the case in the U.S., according to people with knowledge of the matter. The Securities Commission of the Bahamas tapped lawyer Brian Simms KC to oversee FTX Digital Markets’ liquidation. A Bahamian court approved Mr. Simms’s appointment on Thursday. FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried resigned as chief executive and the company appointed John J. Ray III as new CEO on Friday. FTX and more than 130 corporate affiliates filed for chapter 11 in Delaware the same day. The Securities Commission said when it named Mr. Simms provisional liquidator that it needed to take swift action to protect the platform’s customers, creditors and other stakeholders. The commission said it is the sole authority in the Bahamas investigating FTX and that it expected to speak with authorities in other countries in the coming days and weeks.

More than 50 Poor Countries in Danger of Bankruptcy, Says UN Official

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More than 50 of the poorest developing countries are in danger of defaulting on their debt and becoming effectively bankrupt unless the rich world offers urgent assistance, the head of the UN Development Programme has warned, The Guardian reported. Inflation, the energy crisis and rising interest rates are creating conditions where an increasing number of countries are in danger of default, with potentially disastrous impacts on their people, according to Achim Steiner, the UN’s global development chief. “There are currently 54 countries on our list [of those likely to default] and if we have more shocks — interest rates go up further, borrowing becomes more expensive, energy prices, food prices — it becomes almost inevitable that we will see a number of these economies unable to pay,” he said. Steiner noted that any such default would create further problems for solving the climate crisis. “It certainly will not help [climate] action,” he said. Without measures to help them with debt, he warned, poor countries could not get to grips with the climate crisis. “The issue of debt has now become such a big problem for so many developing economies that dealing with the debt crisis becomes a precondition for actually accelerating climate action,” he said.

Cryptocurrency and Cross-Border Insolvencies, Recent International Case Law and More to Be Discussed at ABI's Cross-Border Insolvency Program in New York on Nov. 14.

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

Alexandria, Va. — Speakers from around the globe will be discussing today's most relevant cross-border cases and topics at ABI’s Cross-Border Insolvency Program, being held at Blank Rome LLP’s Conference Center in Manhattan on Nov. 14 and hosted by ABI’s International Committee. Attendees have the opportunity to earn up to 6 hours of CLE/CPE credit, and a networking reception will close out the program. Sessions at the Cross-Border Insolvency Program include:

  • Cryptocurrency and Cross-Border Insolvency Law
  • Is it a Modern Approach? A Discussion of Recognition Issues and Recent Developments Regarding the United States, Cayman Islands and Hong Kong
  • View from the Bench
  • Cross-Border Update

To view the full list of expert speakers and find out more about the Cross-Border Insolvency Program, please click here. If you are a member of the press and would like to attend the Cross-Border Insolvency Program, please contact ABI Public Affairs Officer John Hartgen at 703-894-5935 or jhartgen@abi.org.

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ABI is the largest multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency. ABI was founded in 1982 to provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy issues. The ABI membership includes nearly 10,000 attorneys, accountants, bankers, judges, professors, lenders, turnaround specialists and other bankruptcy professionals, providing a forum for the exchange of ideas and information. For additional information on ABI, visit www.abiworld.org. For additional conference information, visit http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html.