Crypto Exchange FTX's former Chief Executive Officer denied the speculations that he has flown to South America after resigning from the reported bankrupt company. He clarified through a text message that he is currently in the Bahamas.
WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 08: CEO of FTX Sam Bankman-Fried testifies during a hearing before the House Financial Services Committee at Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill December 8, 2021 in Washington, DC. The committee held a hearing on "Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Understanding the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Innovation in the United States." (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Alex Wong/Getty Images
(Photo : Alex Wong/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 08: CEO of FTX Sam Bankman-Fried testifies during a hearing before the House Financial Services Committee at Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill December 8, 2021 in Washington, DC. The committee held a hearing on "Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Understanding the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Innovation in the United States."
Clarifying Speculations
After resigning as the Chief Executive Officer of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried confirmed that he is in the Bahamas and denied the speculations regarding him fleeing to South America through a text message that he sent from Reuters.
As per the report, the text message was sent after the cryptocurrency platform filed for bankruptcy protection, followed by his resignation on Friday. Several customers were concerned about the meltdown as they question the company if they will still be getting their money and investments back from them. As per CNET, FTX is known as one of the biggest players in the industry before these issues circulated.
The speculations came from Flightradar24. The user posted on Twitter last Saturday stating that the former CEO is flying from Nassau to Argentina and presented the screenshot of the supposed flight. Before resigning, Bankman-Fried also posted on Twitter last Thursday as he apologized several times for the current state of the company. He said that he will be transparent to its customers regarding their situation. He stated, "Transparently--my hands were tied during the duration of the possible Binance deal; I wasn't particularly allowed to say much publicly. But of course, it's on me that we ended up there in the first place."
Based on Financial Times' report, before filing for bankruptcy protection, the global exchange of FTX had $900 million in sellable assets against the $9 billion in liabilities. Based on these numbers alone, the fall of FTX happened so swiftly as the exchange was valued at $32 billion earlier this year.
Bankman-Fried was also billed as crypto's white knight, as reported by CNBC after multiple digital asset companies were bailed out by him. As of the moment, he is now facing probes from the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
In a press release that FTX has released last Friday, it stated that John J. Ray III has now been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer and Bankman-Fried will remain in the company as he assists in an orderly transition. The statement added, "Many employees of the FTX Group in various countries are expected to continue with the FTX Group and assist Mr. Ray and independent professionals in its operations during the Chapter 11 proceedings."
Authorities are also still deciding if Bankman-Fried should face charges regarding the company's meltdown during his term as the CEO of FTX.
