Cofsky noted that there are currently 3 options for the exchange: the exchange is sold; a reorganisation in partnership with an outside partner; or FTX relaunches on its own.
FTX has gotten proposals from three bidders who have come forward to restart the trading operations of the exchange.
Lawyers had initially told a judge in Delaware that they were mulling over the possible reorganisation of the exchange with a partner, or selling the exchange or reorganising it independently.
FTX may get a restart
Kevin Cofsky, partner at investment bank Perella Weinberg Partners (the company tasked with restructuring and exploring the capital market options for the now defunct exchange) told Judge John Dorsey of the US Bankruptcy court of Delaware that a term for the assets of FTX will be announced on December 16.
Cofsky noted that there are currently 3 options for the exchange: the exchange is sold; a reorganisation in partnership with an outside partner; or FTX relaunches on its own.
“We have been engaging in an outreach process with a number of interested parties to either acquire the legacy exchange assets and/or to partner with the debtors in connection with a launch of the exchange,” Cofsky said during Tuesday’s hearing. “We’ve been evaluating that process relative to the potential to reorganize the assets on a standalone basis.”
While the founder of FTX is on trial for charges of fraud and misappropriation of customers’ fund, the filing revealed that in early September, there were already 75 bidders for what’s called FTX 2.0.
Read more: ‘FTX 2.0’ may be underway, legal billing document hints
Customers are priorities
Cofsky said that the value of customers to the exchange is very important.
“In fact my experience since my last testimony only serves to enhance my view that the value of those customer identities to the estate is high and very important,” Cofsky said.
The customer list of the FTX exchange has remained sealed since the declaration of bankruptcy. However, there’s been applications to unseal it. Judge Dorsey made an order to keep the customer list redacted for the next 90 days.
“I now know that there are at least three parties who are interested in purchasing the asset, the platform,” Dorsey said. “Just as a matter of common sense, a platform without customers is nothing so it has to have value.”
In order to pay back creditors, the administrators in charge of the FTX estate are still gathering assets, having already retrieved about $7B. Of that, almost $3.4B is in cryptocurrency.
Bankman-Fried’s trial will continue on October 26 following three previous weeks of the prosecution calling key witnesses. The key witnesses have included: SBF’s close associates like Caroline Ellison, Gary Wang, Nishad Singh; an expert witness; and other customers to come give testimony about the internal working of the company.
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