OKX to Return $157M in Frozen Assets to FTX’s Bankruptcy Estate
- The assets were discovered and frozen during an investigation to identify any FTX and Alameda-related transactions on OKX, which was launched shortly after their collapse.
- The Seychelles-based also announced plans to expand its crypto services in Australia, and open a regional office in the country in the coming months.
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Seychelles-based cryptocurrency exchange OKX is planning to return $157 million worth in digital assets that belonged to FTX and Alameda Research to the bankruptcy estate, the company said in a press release on 30 March.
According to the announcement, the exchange opened an investigation into transactions related to FTX and Alameda Research shortly after their collapse in November 2022. During its investigation, OKX discovered several accounts connected to FTX and Alameda, which were immediately frozen to safeguard assets that were valued at $157 million. The company revealed in its press release:
“In the days surrounding FTX’s collapse in November 2022, OKX proactively initiated investigations to determine whether there had been any FTX-related transactions on its platform. When these investigations discovered assets and accounts associated with FTX and Alameda Research, OKX immediately took action to freeze the associated accounts and safeguard the assets.”
The exchange noted that the move was made in response to a motion filed in the FTX bankruptcy proceedings, and that it hopes these assets would be successfully returned to FTX users. FTX bankruptcy lawyers said earlier this month that the exchange had a “massive shortfall” in assets, and that they were able to identify $2.2 billion of assets located in wallets associated with FTX.
OKX also announced its plans to expand its crypto services to Australia, and open a regional office in the country in the coming months to better service its customers in the region. Haider Rafique, OKX’s chief marketing officer, noted that the Australian expansion was part of the exchange’s strategy to become the largest crypto assets service provider in the world. He said:
“Our ambition is straightforward – to become the leading crypto platform in the world. We see Australia as an indispensable part of this strategy and a key growth market. With such a strong uptake of crypto in Australia already, we’re committed to the local market and aim to build a strong local office.”
- The U.S. Department of Justice has expressed its concerns over Sam Bankman-Fried’s seven expert witnesses, and requested they be barred from testifying on the case.
- The DoJ claimed most of the proposed experts lacked the necessary foundation for their opinions, making them unqualified to be an expert witness.
Former CEO of FTX Sam Bankman-Fried leaves the Federal Court in New York after pleading not guilty, 3 January, 2022.
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- A cyber security incident at bankruptcy service provider Kroll has resulted in the exposure of “non-sensitive” customer data for claimants involved in the FTX and BlockFi cases.
- Both companies confirmed that account passwords, systems, and funds remained safe, but warned customers to be on the lookout for phishing scams.
- Crypto exchange Bitget will make it mandatory for new users to undergo its level-1 KYC process starting 1 September, old users will have until 1 October to do the same.
- The level-1 KYC process requires users to submit a government identification and undergo facial authentication, and is in line with global regulatory guidelines.