Recent reports have revealed that Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, received more than $2 billion in transfers from FTX entities. According to court filings and a press release from FTX's new management, led by CEO John J. Ray III, Bankman-Fried and five members of his inner circle received a total of $3.2 billion in payments and loans. These funds came primarily from Alameda Research, a crypto trading hedge fund affiliated with FTX.
Bankman-Fried is currently facing a dozen federal charges related to the collapse of FTX, which includes allegations of securities fraud and looting of the platform for personal gain. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is detained at his parent's California home, awaiting a trial in October.
FTX noted that the $3.2 billion figure did not include over $240 million spent to purchase luxury property in the Bahamas, political and charitable donations made directly by the FTX Debtors, and substantial transfers to non-Debtor subsidiaries in the Bahamas and other jurisdictions. Ray has been working to recover the cryptocurrency and other assets that can eventually be returned to the millions of FTX customers whose accounts have been frozen since its collapse. FTX also stated that it is investigating possible ways to claw back the transfers to Bankman-Fried and his former colleagues.