FTX debtors recover $7B, say investigation has been ‘extraordinarily challenging’

CEO John J. Ray noted that it was “extraordinarily challenging” to track the assets

article-image

mundissima/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

Debtors have recovered approximately $7 billion in liquid assets from FTX, according to new court documents. 

While this still falls short of the roughly $8.7 billion that the exchange owes to its customers, the gap appears to be closing. However, it is unclear whether the $7 billion will go toward the money owed to customers.

“As in the form of fiat currency and stablecoin that had been misappropriated. Despite the ongoing challenges created by the commingling of customer deposits and corporate assets, and other mismanagement of the FTX Group, the Debtors continue to make substantial progress in their ongoing efforts to identify, secure and recover assets for the estate,” a recent filing stated. 

According to the court documents, it was “extraordinarily challenging” to track the assets due to the “commingling and misuse of FTX.com customer deposits occurred for several years.” 

The debtors in charge of the FTX estate had to differentiate between the operating funds for the FTX Group and FTX.com customer deposits. 

The 38-page document details FTX’s spending, including former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s political donations. Bankman-Fried and other FTX executives made roughly $100 million in donations.

FTX also spent over $240 million on real estate in the Bahamas. The debtors were able to track transfers between an Alameda account and FTX worth $2.2 billion of commingled funds. 

“The FTX Group funded these real estate purchases from accounts that held commingled customer and corporate funds…The FTX Group purchased most of this real estate through a subsidiary, FTX Property Holdings Ltd., which was incorporated in the Bahamas in July 2021,” the document states. 

The report is the latest in CEO John J. Ray’s investigation into the company. Back in April, Ray disclosed the inner workings of FTX, revealing that FTX did not properly keep track of employee payrolls.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

recent research

Nillion_DeSci_Report_Template.png

Research

Nillion’s Monad Integration is poised to catalyze the next phase of DeSci’s evolution by eliminating key privacy bottlenecks. This synergy allows researchers, institutions, and DAOs to exchange sensitive data and insights securely while managing governance and payments onchain.

article-image

Celebrating the wisdom of a diamond-handed Bitcoin Legend

article-image

With the success of RWAs and stablecoins, DePINs could onboard the next wave of crypto users

article-image

Is crypto straying too far from things of value?

article-image

Firedancer and Solana ETFs look less significant than before

article-image

The newly passed House bill amplifies that strategic pivot for the Trump administration, from attempting austerity to running the economy hot

article-image

Unable to secure further funding, the game cycled through three different blockchains and at least five different game engines since 2018