NASSAU, BAHAMAS — FTX Trading Ltd and its affiliated US debtors announced yesterday that they have come to terms for “mutual cooperation” with the Bahamian-appointed joint provisional liquidators in their recovery efforts, ending a weeks-long courtroom stand off over access to vital information regarding the collapsed crypto empire.
FTX announced yesterday that the agreement would see cooperation between both sides in the Chapter 11 cases in Delaware and the provisional liquidation of FTX Digital Markets (FTXDM) in The Bahamas.
“Under the cooperation agreement, the parties commence work together to share information, secure and return the property to their estates, coordinate litigation against third parties and explore strategic alternatives for maximizing stakeholder recoveries,” read a statement from the company.
“The parties have agreed on parameters for involving FTX DM in the chapter 11 cases and for involving the FTX Debtors in proceedings in The Bahamas. The parties also agreed on the disposition of real estate in The Bahamas in a process operationally led by the JPLs and overseen by courts in both jurisdictions, as well as a process to confirm the inventory of digital assets under the control of the Securities Commission of The Bahamas in the Fireblocks account previously disclosed by the FTX Debtors. The parties are each comfortable the digital assets have been appropriately safeguarded by the Securities Commission as restructuring discussions continue.”
John Ray III, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Restructuring Officer of the FTX Debtors thanked the joint provisional liquidators for constructive meetings and “all their work on behalf of their estate.”
He added: “There are some issues where we do not yet have a meeting of the minds, but we resolved many of the outstanding matters and have a path forward to resolve the rest.”
For his part, Brian Simms, K.C. said meetings stressed the shared objective to find the best solution for customers and creditors of the FTX.com platform.
“Each jurisdiction has different tools available to accomplish that objective and we look forward to working collaboratively to optimize outcomes for all of our respective stakeholders,” Simms said.
The agreement is subject to the approval of the US Bankruptcy Court in Delaware and the Supreme Court of The Bahamas.
Earlier this week, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried pleaded not guilty in a Manhattan federal court yesterday to charges that he defrauded investors and illegally diverted a massive amount of customer deposits to his Alameda Research crypto hedge fund for his own personal benefit and to help grow his crypto empire.
Judge Lewis A. Kaplan set a tentative trial date of October 2. Bankman-Fried, 30, has been under house arrest at his parents’ California home on a $250 million bond.