March 16 (Reuters) - Bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange
FTX made transfers of about $2.2 billion to company founder Sam
Bankman-Fried through related entities, the company's new
management said.
Overall more than $3.2 billion was transferred through
payments and loans to company founders and key employees, FTX
said in a statement on Wednesday.
These payments were made chiefly from Alameda Research
hedge fund, FTX said, adding that it made these disclosures by
filing schedules and statements of financial affairs with the
bankruptcy court.
The crypto exchange said the transfers 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 units in the
Bahamas and other jurisdictions.
A lawyer for Bankman-Fried declined to comment.
FTX filed for bankruptcy protection in November, saying it
was unable to completely repay customers who had deposited funds
on its exchange. FTX's new CEO, John Ray, has said his top
priority was recovering assets to repay FTX customers. Prosecutors have charged Bankman-Fried, 31, with stealing
billions of dollars in FTX customer funds to plug losses at
Alameda Research, and making tens of millions of dollars in
illegal political donations to buy influence in Washington, D.C.
He denies wrongdoing and is fighting to stay out of jail
pending his scheduled Oct. 2 fraud trial. (Reporting by Shubhendu Deshmukh in Bengaluru; Editing by
Stephen Coates)
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