LONDON — FTX, one of the world's largest crypto exchanges, is seeking new funding after a rush of customer withdrawals left it on the brink of collapse.

Regulators froze some assets of the distressed cryptocurrency exchange and industry peers are trying to limit losses, while FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who has resigned as chief executive, is coming under scrutiny.

FTX filed for US bankruptcy protection on Friday (Nov 11), after the biggest blowup in the crypto industry drew calls for tighter regulation.

At least US$1 billion (S$1.37 billion) of customer funds have vanished from FTX, according to two people familiar with the matter.

FTX, founded in 2019, expanded rapidly and was valued at US$32 billion in January 2022 during a fundraising.

Here's what investors in FTX are saying now:

SOFTBANK

The total investment of SoftBank Group Corp's 9984.T Vision Fund in the US and international operations of FTX is less than US$100 million, a source close to SoftBank said on Friday.

SoftBank is marking down its FTX investments to zero, the source said. The complications at FTX mark the latest difficulty for the Vision Fund, which has been hit in recent quarters by a global tech rout.

SEQUOIA CAPITAL

Sequoia Capital said on Wednesday that it would mark down its total investments in FTX to US$0.

In a letter posted on Twitter, Sequoia said that its Global Growth Fund III invested US$150 million in FTX.com and FTX US, which accounted for less than 3 per cent of the fund's committed capital, while the Sequoia Capital Global Equities fund invested US$63.5 million.

"The fund remains in good shape," it said.

ONTARIO TEACHERS PENSION PLAN

The Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (OTPP) said on Thursday it had invested a total of US$95 million in FTX.

Any financial loss from the exposure will have limited impact on the pension plan, OTTP said.

TEMASEK

Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings said in emailed comments to Reuters: "We are aware of the developments between FTX and Binance, and are engaging FTX in our capacity as shareholder."

CIRCLE

Fintech company Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said in a tweet on Wednesday that "Circle is a tiny equity holder of FTX, and FTX is a tiny equity holder of Circle." REUTERS