Authorities in the Bahamas reportedly ordered former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to mint “hundreds of millions of dollars’” worth of new digital tokens and then transfer them to government officials after the exchange’s collapse last month, the lawyers overseeing the exchange’s bankruptcy alleged in a statement Tuesday.
The complaint is part of an effort by FTX’s US-appointed bankruptcy team, led by new FTX CEO John J Ray III, to paint Bahamian liquidators’ relationship with Bankman-Fried as alarmingly chummy, as the two duke it out over jurisdiction over the exchange’s restructuring.
First reported by Bloomberg, the complaint alleges that beyond the request for the tokens the Bahamian government officials were “working closely” with Bankman-Fried to help him regain unauthorized access to the exchange’s systems. They also noted an affirmative email sent by Bankman-Fried on November 9 in response to requests that withdrawals be eased for Bahamian residents.
“It’s your call whether you want us to do this—but we are more than happy to and would consider it the very least of our duty to the country, and could open it up immediately if you reply saying you want us to,” Bankman-Fried wrote not long before around $100 million begin to move out of the exchange, according to reporting by Bloomberg.
The Securities Commission of the Bahamas issued a statement blasting the US team’s decision to publish the private correspondence. Ray’s statements, the commission said, “do not appear to be concerned with facts but rather, appear intended only to make headlines and advance questionable agendas,” as well as “to create a false impression of communications between Mr. Bankman-Fried and the Commission.”
“Every action taken by the Securities Commission of The Bahamas was in strict accordance with our country’s legislation and with orders made by the Supreme Court of The Bahamas,” the statement added.
https://twitter.com/SCBgov_bs/status/1602695706212458498
