Report: FTX Founder Tries to Raise Cash Amid Bankruptcy

The cryptocurrency exchange he launched may be broke and under investigation, but FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is still hoping to raise enough cash to cover the firm’s users.

That’s according to a Tuesday (Nov. 15) report by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), which cited unnamed sources. Bankman-Fried and a few remaining FTX employees spent the weekend trying to nail down investors to fill an $8 billion shortfall to repay the exchange’s customers.

So far, there’s no indication of what Bankman-Fried has offered in return for an investment, nor is there any sign any investors have said yes, the report stated.

FTX did not return PYMNTS’ request for comment.

The money owed to customers is just one of many hurdles facing FTX, which until last week was seen as a stable presence in an otherwise rocky crypto industry.

As PYMNTS reported Tuesday, the company’s downfall has triggered a worldwide regulatory investigation and could leave the firm dealing with more than 1 million creditors.

A court filing Monday (Nov. 14) in the company’s federal bankruptcy case said FTX and its associated companies are facing more than 100,000 creditors and that “[in] fact, there could be more than one million creditors.”

Also Tuesday, PYMNTS reported that the Securities Commission of The Bahamas — the country where FTX is headquartered — named a group of liquidators for the company.

“Given the magnitude, urgency and international implications of the unfolding events with regard to FTX, the commission recognized that it had to, and moved swiftly to use its regulatory powers…to further protect the interests of clients, creditors and other stakeholders globally of FTX,” the commission said.

The commission is the lead authority in the Bahamas investigating FTX and its associated companies that operated in the country.

“Over the coming days and weeks, the commission expects to engage with other supervisory authorities on a regulator-to-regulator basis as this event is multijurisdictional in nature,” the commission said.

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