Bahamas regulator sticks to estimate of FTX assets

NASSAU — The Securities Commission of the Bahamas (SCB) rebuffed on Monday (Jan 2) FTX's claims about the digital assets of its Bahamas unit held by the regulator, saying the debtors of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange had "incomplete information".

Last month, the SCB said it had seized more than US$3.5 billion (S$4.68 billion) in cryptocurrency from the unit, FTX Digital Markets, which it was holding for future repayment to customers and other creditors.

FTX disputed SCB's calculations, saying its digital assets seized in November were worth just US$296 million and not US$3.5 billion.

"Such public assertions by the Chapter 11 debtors were based on incomplete information," the regulator said in a statement on Monday.

There was no immediate response from FTX, which has been at odds with Bahamian officials since filing for bankruptcy protection on Nov 11.

Bahamas officials have sought access to FTX's records to help liquidate FTX Digital Markets, but the company's US bankruptcy team said it did not trust them with the information.

FTX's founder and former chief executive, Sam Bankman-Fried, was arrested on fraud charges and is expected to be arraigned on Tuesday before US District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan federal court.

The firm's new chief executive John Ray has said the exchange lost US$8 billion of customer money. AFP