May 20, 2024

Former FTX ex-manager's fund raises $150 million

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Former FTX ex-manager's fund raises $150 million

The Wall Street Journal has learned that the charitable foundation of the former top manager of the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX earned at least $150 million from the sale of FTT's own tokens.

Ruairi Donnelly started hispath to FTX and Alameda Research in 2019 from Chief of Human Resources. A week before the official launch of FTT, the exchange offered its employees the purchase of tokens at an insider price -  $0.05 each. While for the rest the starting price was $1,
writes the publication.

Donnelly exchanged $562,000 of his salary for 11.2 million tokens. Then he donated them to his charitable foundation, Polaris Ventures, which is now a major creditor of FTX.

After six months, the cost of tokens will significantly increasegrew. Polaris started selling them and made millions of dollars from it. Donnelly continued to work at FTX during this time. According to Donnelly's lawyers, the tokens now do not belong to the exchange. Lawyers insist they are part of the former FTX executive's unpaid salary.  

According to the WSJ, the Donnelly Foundation ownsassets worth about $150 million. Of this, $30 million are in frozen accounts of the FTX crypto exchange. Now Donnelly is trying to find a way to cash out the Polaris assets locked up on FTX.

US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)accused FTX founder Sam Benkman-Fried of using client funds to bail out Alameda Research's trading arm and to fund his own luxury lifestyle. 

Bankman-Fried rejects all eightThe charges against him include wire fraud, conspiracy to commit commodity and securities fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering and campaign finance violations. Five of the eight charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison each.