2025-02-20
A U.S. court has ordered Sam
Bankman-Fried (SBF), the founder of FTX, to forfeit about $1 billion in assets,
including two private jets, political donations, and a large stake in Robinhood.
The forfeiture following his conviction
for fraud.
The U.S. District Court for the
Southern District of New York issued the order, detailing a wide array of
seized assets, including financial holdings, cryptocurrencies, and luxury
items.
The "Final Order of Forfeiture as
to Specific Property", issued by the U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York on February 18, 2025, details the extensive list of assets
seized from Bankman-Fried.
Among the most valuable forfeitures are
55.2 million Robinhood shares, which were originally seized by the U.S.
Department of Justice in January 2023. Robinhood later repurchased these shares
in September for $605.7 million.
Additionally, the court has seized two
aircraft—a Bombardier Global 5000 and an Embraer Legacy—as well as assets
linked to Alameda Research, a trading firm co-founded by Bankman-Fried.
The forfeiture order also includes a wide
range of political donations that Bankman-Fried and other FTX executives—such
as Ryan Salame and Nishad Singh—had made on his behalf. The contributions,
spanning across various political groups and candidates, were returned to the
government.
Beyond stocks and cash, Bankman-Fried
forfeited a substantial amount of cryptocurrency, held in accounts on Binance.US
and various banks. The seized assets include millions in Tether (USDT), along
with significant holdings in Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Cardano (ADA), and
Dogecoin (DOGE).
Key assets forfeited include:
Robinhood Shares
Over $600 million from the sale of
Robinhood stock held by Bankman-Fried's company, Emergent Fidelity
Technologies.
Cryptocurrency Holdings
Substantial amount of various
cryptocurrencies held by Alameda Research at Binance, such as $56 million in
XRP, $3.6 million in Tron (TRX), $3.4 million in Cardano (ADA), and $2.3
million in Bitcoin (BTC).
Financial Assets
Substantial funds across multiple
financial institutions, including $119 million in Tether (USDT) at Binance for
Alameda Research, $21 million at Marex for Emergent Fidelity Technologies, $50
million at Moonstone Bank for FTX Digital Markets, $101 million at Silvergate
for FTX Digital Markets, and $7 million at Flagstar Bank for Bankman-Fried and
another individual.
Private Jets: Two aircraft—a 2009
Bombardier Global 5000 and a 2006 Embraer Legacy—were also seized.
Additionally, the court order detailed
the retraction of over 250 political donations made by Bankman-Fried and other
FTX executives, aiming to recover funds distributed to various political
campaigns and organizations.
On the same day as the forfeiture
order, FTX initiated creditor repayments for those with claims of up to $50,000,
a category referred to as “Convenience Class”. The repayments are being
facilitated by Kraken and BitGo.
Despite pleading not guilty to eight
criminal charges, Bankman-Fried was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years in
prison. He has since filed an appeal, claiming that the jury was presented with
an incomplete narrative about FTX user funds and that prosecutors misrepresented
the case.
This latest legal development marks
another chapter in the downfall of the former crypto mogul, whose fraudulent
activities rocked the cryptocurrency industry and led to one of the largest
financial collapses in recent history.
This forfeiture marks an important step
in addressing the financial misconduct associated with FTX's collapse, as
efforts continue to recover assets for creditors and stakeholders affected by
the company's downfall.
