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☆ From threatening skeptical execs to approving expenses with emojis, here are the 6 most damning claims from FTX's first debtors report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Morgan Chittum | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Sam Bankman-Fried threatened FTX employees who voiced concerns about its business practices. The report, which is 45 pages long, compiled interviews of 19 former FTX employees and "received substantial information through counsel" for five others. 1) SBF threatened FTX execsMultiple FTX execs were threatened after voicing concerns over the company's business practices. As a result, the report says: "Senior FTX Group personnel scrambled to cobble together purported policies that could be shown to auditors. One former executive described Singh's and Wang's oversight on FTX Group as: "If Nishad [and Gary] got hit by a bus, the whole company would be done."

☆ From $2.5 million yachts to $400,000 in DoorDash bills, here are Sam Bankman-Fried and other execs' wildest purchases with FTX and Alameda funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Since the dramatic implosion of crypto exchange FTX last November, court filings and other reports have revealed the extent of executives' lavish spending habits. Liquidation expert John J. Ray III took over the FTX CEO role from Sam Bankman-Fried to handle the bankruptcy. Nathan Howard/Getty Images; Michael M. Santiago/Getty ImagesBankruptcy lawyers said Alameda "bought planes, houses, threw parties, made political donations" with a $65 billion line of credit at FTX. The vast sums are hard to visualize, but it was partly thanks to this spending that customers have been left out of pocket.

☆ Here's why you should expect a housing rebound, according to a top economist at the National Association of Realtors
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

On tap today we've got a great interview with a top real estate economist and this week's best markets stories, including updates on the Silicon Valley Bank meltdown. Nadia Evangelou: What we see in the data is that the housing market will likely pick up in the coming months, in the spring season. NE: It seems that homesales activity has bottomed out, and 2023 will be the turning point for the housing market. Due to low inventory, even though there are relatively few buyers on the market, housing demand continues to outpace housing supply. We expect 4.5 million homes to be sold in 2023, and about 5.3 million homes to be sold in 2024.

☆ Binance continues to get more popular with Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX out of the picture, despite increased regulatory scrutiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Binance is extending its dominance in crypto trading since FTX collapsed in November. Its market share grew to 61.8% in February from 59.4% in January, CryptoCompare data showed. According to data from CryptoCompare cited by CoinDesk, Binance increased its market share for the fourth consecutive month in February, growing to 61.8% from 59.4% in January. Coinbase was a distant second with trading volume of $39.9 billion, down 29% from the prior month, and Kraken was third with $19.3 billion, down 11%. Meanwhile, former rival exchange FTX continues to wade through bankruptcy procedures and is effectively out of the picture as far as competition.

☆ FTX's lawyers and advisers cost $38 million for a month of work - and the bankrupt crypto exchange's new CEO charged $305,000 for February
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The army of professionals working with FTX billed $38 million in expenses for January. FTX CEO John Ray III submitted a bill for $305,565 for the month of February. Those three firms have over 180 lawyers and over 50 other staffers working on the FTX case, per the CoinDesk report. Sullivan & Cromwell billed 14,569 hours of work in January for a total of $16.8 million. Meanwhile, FTX's trading arm sued Grayscale this week in a bid to claw back $250 million to repay customers.

Efforts to recoup them will highlight major flaws in political donations. On Thursday, former Chief Executive Sam Bankman-Fried was hit with additional criminal charges, including an accusation that he conspired with two former FTX executives to make more than 300 illegal political donations. Ray is hoping to add politicians’ returned donations to his coffers, and past blowups suggest he will have some luck. Madoff and Stanford’s political contributions, totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars each, pale in comparison to the $84 million-plus FTX executives gave campaigns. No other FTX executives, including Ryan Salame and Nishad Singh, have been charged with campaign finance violations at this time.

☆ 2 firms helping with FTX's bankruptcy are seeking $13 million of payment for under 3 weeks of work, including nearly $20,000 for food
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Two of those deal with less than three weeks of work, and seek a total of $13 million. Law firm Sullivan & Cromwell charges $2,165 an hour for the time of its partners, who did 2,267 hours of work. Partners did a total of 2,267 hours work on the case in the 19 days between November 12 and 30. Alvarez and Marshal, a management consulting firm, is also charging for its first 20 days of work, seeking $5.2 million for a total of 7,925 hours work. Landis Rath & Cobb and AlixPartners are both asking for over $900,000, and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan is seeking $1.2 million.

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☆ FTX's new boss says security was so weak that founders could 'download half a billion dollars' of crypto without detection, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

John J. Ray III, the current FTX CEO, berated the crypto exchange's security. He told a Monday court hearing that an exec could download $500m of crypto and walk away unchecked. FTX filed for bankruptcy on November 11, weeks after its then-CEO Sam Bankman-Fried insulted rival crypto CEO Changpeng Zhao. Hours after the exchange filed for bankruptcy, more than $370 million of crypto disappeared from FTX. Ray also described a "massive scramble for information" as liquidators looked to secure customers' passwords and crypto wallets.

☆ It's time to chill with al the recession talk
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

New York CNN —In 2021, a bunch of economists and policy makers underestimated the inflation that was taking root around the world. In 2022, as inflation hit 40-year-highs and the Fed ramped up interest rates, many of those commentators went full-on gloomy — predicting a recession was all but inevitable. And that makes it hard, if not impossible, to imagine a recession anytime soon. “Any concern the economy is in recession or close to a recession should be completely dashed by these numbers,” Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi told CNN on Friday. “The economy is further away from recession than ever,” wrote Christopher Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds.

☆ Bankrupt crypto lender Celsius used Quickbooks for its accounting just like FTX, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Zahra Tayeb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Bankrupt crypto lender Celsius used QuickBooks to log its finances just like FTX. According to an examiner's report, Celsius' tracked its finances in 15 QuickBooks files and failed to produce consolidated statements. Later, Pillay found "significant discrepancies" between account balances in Celsius' QuickBooks files and those used to create consolidated statements, per Decrypt. The court examiner found the "files produced by Celsius were not the original files used to prepare the consolidated financial statements." A detailed probe into the troubled crypto lender found that Celsius misled customers when it advertised its business model.

☆ The New York Times, Stanford University, Coinbase and Netflix are among FTX's laundry list of creditors, court filing shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Morgan Chittum | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

FTX owes money to media companies, airlines universities, crypto exchanges, and government agencies. The failed exchange has millions of creditors, including Stanford University, Netflix, and Coinbase. FTX owes money to media companies, airlines, charities, universities, cryptocurrency exchanges, and many government agencies, according to a court filing on Wednesday. Although the list does not say how much money each party is owed, the company has millions of creditors, including FTX customers. FTX's new CEO, John Ray III, said he's looking into the possibility of reviving the failed exchange and resuming the platform's normal operations during its bankruptcy process.

☆ A top investment chief explains why bonds offer an attractive hedge for a mild and brief recession in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

I'm senior reporter Phil Rosen, and below I'm sharing my conversation with Northwestern Mutual's chief investment officer, Brent Schutte. He sees the bond market as this year's best recession hedge. Phil Rosen: You said you're expecting a mild and brief recession this year. Brent Schutte: The good news is that the bond market has repriced, and the bond market is a hedge against that recession. BC: I do think earnings will come down this year, and cheaper equities give a margin of safety against that.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried has serious beef with FTX's new boss, John Ray III
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

John Ray, CEO of FTX Group, described a litany of amateurish business practices used to run the multibillion-dollar exchange. This much we know for certain: Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX's new boss, John Ray III, are not each other's biggest fans. From their comments, we can see that they disagree on how to run a company, where certain cash went, and who can repay who. It doesn't take a stoic to make Bankman-Fried look chatty, given the extensive media tour he embarked on after FTX went under. And strangely, as the boss and former boss duke it out, FTX's native token FTT is quietly skyrocketing again.

☆ Judge in FTX bankruptcy case rejects motion to remove elite NYC lawyers
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —One of America’s elite white-collar law firms has emerged as a contentious figure in the complex FTX saga. A judge ruled that the bankrupt crypto platform could retain Sullivan & Cromwell as legal counsel, overruling objections from FTX customers who accused the firm of conflicts of interest. Then FTX’s former top lawyer supported the motion in a court filing, which included additional allegations that one of his former colleagues improperly funneled FTX business to Sullivan & Cromwell. Friedberg alleged that that lawyer funneled business to Sullivan & Cromwell, hoping to curry favor with the firm to which he hoped to eventually return. Earlier this month, a group of US senators also raised objections to Sullivan & Cromwell’s participation in the FTX bankruptcy.

☆ New FTX Chief Says Crypto Exchange Could Restart
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Alexander Saeedy | Alexander Osipovich | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

FTX’s new chief executive, John J. Ray III, said he’s looking into the possibility of reviving the bankrupt crypto exchange as he works to return money to the failed company’s customers and creditors. In his first interview since taking over FTX in November, Mr. Ray said that he has set up a task force to explore restarting FTX.com, the company’s main international exchange. Although top FTX executives have been accused of criminal misconduct, some customers have praised its technology and suggested that there would be value in rebooting the platform, he said.

☆ FTX money trails leading to politicians, media, and other crypto exchanges point to the deep influence of Sam Bankman-Fried
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Here's what Bankman-Fried seemed to be aiming at: Stash money with all the right people, while lobbying for policy favorable to FTX. As CoinDesk reported this week, 37% of Congress took money from Bankman-Fried and other FTX executives. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer were among the 196 senators and representatives that received funds. Other lawmakers included some who were just sworn into congressional ranks this month, which points to Bankman-Fried possibly seeking to hold sway over new members. GOLDMAN SACHS stock price on Jan. 19, 2023 Markets Insider10.

☆ FTX execs gave campaign cash to 37% of Congress, including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

CoinDesk reported Wednesday that FTX execs, including Sam Bankman-Fried, gave campaign funds to 196 members of Congress. Among those named in the report include Kevin McCarthy, Chuck Schumer, and some lawmakers who were just sworn in this month. California Representative Lou Correa, for example, took a $2,900 donation directly from Bankman-Fried, CoinDesk found, although he said the two had never met or spoken. Some of the political campaigns told CoinDesk they have talked to FTX's bankruptcy team regarding what to do with the funds. Meanwhile, of the 196 members of Congress who accepted funds from former FTX executives, 73% did not respond to CoinDesk's' requests for comment.

☆ FTX lost $415 million worth of crypto in hacker heists, the collapsed exchange's new bosses say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

FTX lost $415 million worth of crypto to hackers, its new bosses said Tuesday. "It has taken a Herculean investigative effort from our team to uncover this preliminary information," acting CEO John Ray said. Around $415 million of the assets for recovery had been lost in crypto hacks, FTX's new bosses said. Hackers stole $323 million from the Bahamas-based parent company FTX.com, $90 million from FTX, and $2 million from sister trading firm Alameda Research, according to the presentation. As well as the exchange's crypto and cash holdings, they identified $253 million worth of real estate in the Bahamas as potential assets for recovery in Tuesday's presentation.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried says he sometimes worked at the offices of the lawyers now investigating FTX after criticism of their past links
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Law firm Sullivan & Cromwell has been criticized for its involvement in FTX's bankruptcy having worked with the crypto exchange before. In a Substack Thursday, however, Sam Bankman-Fried said he sometimes worked out of the firm's New York offices. He added that he believes FTX customers could have been reimbursed if it didn't file for bankruptcy. Andrew Dietderich, of Sullivan & Cromwell, told the court that line of credit was used to fund political donations and lavish purchases. Sullivan & Cromwell did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, sent outside normal working hours.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried is now writing his own newsletter while under house arrest at his parents' $4 million property: 'I didn't steal funds'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Presumably writing from his parents' $4 million property in Palo Alto, California near Stanford, Sam Bankman-Fried published a lengthy newsletter yesterday, titled "FTX Pre-Mortem Overview." One statement stood out to me: "I didn't steal funds, and I certainly didn't stash billions away." In the note, Bankman-Fried highlighted that both FTX and Alameda Research were raking in billions in profits in 2021. A key to the collapse, he explained, was 2022's crypto bear market that left just about every token worth dramatically less than the year prior. Well, Bankman-Fried yesterday outlined two versions of the hedge fund's balance sheet, one from each of the past two years.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried says tweets from Binance's CEO in November were a 'targeted attack' on Alameda's assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried said Alameda's assets were the focus of a "targeted attack" by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao. "In November 2022, an extreme, quick, targeted crash precipitated by the CEO of Binance made Alameda insolvent," Bankman-Fried wrote. "In November 2022, an extreme, quick, targeted crash precipitated by the CEO of Binance made Alameda insolvent," Bankman-Fried said. A series of crashes in the crypto market last year led to a roughly 80% decline in the value of Alameda's assets. "Over the few days in November, Alameda's assets fell roughly 50%."

☆ From Tom Brady to Kevin O'Leary, here are 11 famous backers of FTX set to be wiped out in the exchange's stunning collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The fall of FTX has led to billions of dollars in losses for both its investors and customers. As FTX goes through the bankruptcy process, details are starting to emerge about who its investors were. From Tom Brady to Kevin O'Leary, here are 11 famous backers facing a wipeout in the dramatic collapse. As the company goes through the bankruptcy process, more details are starting to emerge about who exactly were the equity investors in FTX. From Tom Brady to Kevin O'Leary, here are 11 famous backers that invested in FTX and are now facing a wipeout.

☆ Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen’s FTX stake will probably get wiped out
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Brady owns 1.1 million common shares of FTX, while Bundchen owns 686,000 shares, according to bankrupcty court documents filed Monday. Whatever Brady and Bundchen paid for their stakes, they, along with hundreds of other investors, will almost certainly see their positions completely wiped out. When companies go bankrupt, stockholders are typically the last in line to recover any funds. Soon after FTX’s collapse, a customer filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, along with Brady, Bundchen and several other celebrity backers. Federal prosecutors accuse the 30-year-old entrepreneur, once a celebrity in crypto circles, of stealing customer funds from FTX to cover outsize losses at his hedge fund, Alameda.

☆ FTX bankruptcy documents show list of investors set to be completely wiped out, including Tom Brady and Robert Kraft
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

FTX released a list of its equity holders on Monday as it continues to navigate the bankruptcy process. Some of the top holders of FTX equity included in the list are Tom Brady, Robert Kraft, and Gisele Bündchen. The FTX shares owned by Brady, Kraft, and Bündchen are expected to be worthless. Billionaire Robert Kraft, who owns the New England Patriots football team, was also listed in the FTX bankruptcy document. Other investors on FTX's equity-holder list include Wall Street's elite hedge funds and growth investors, according to the bankruptcy document.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried says he needs some of his $450 million in Robinhood shares to fund his legal defense as he fights for control of the stake
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sam Bankman-Fried is fighting for ownership of $450 million in Robinhood stock. Meanwhile FTX and BlockFi are laying claim to the shares. The stock is owned in principle by Bankman-Fried and FTX co-founder Gary Wang, and was purchased through Emergent Fidelity Technologies. Bankman-Fried and Wang used borrowed funds from Alameda Research to make the purchase which has been previously documented. Meanwhile, BlockFi's stated ownership of the shares of Robinhood stem from claims that the terms of a loan from BlockFi to FTX used the shares as collateral to guarantee repayment.

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