Proof Group, a Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm, is among the three bidders aiming to revive the bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange, CoinDesk reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.
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Fast Facts
- Proof Group also approached other investors to join the bid for the bankrupt exchange, the unnamed sources reportedly told CoinDesk.
- FTX received multiple bids but the decision is down to a shortlist of three, Perella Weinberg Partners, an investment bank involved in the process, told Coindesk.
- Proof Group is also part of the Fahrenheit consortium, the group of firms that won the bid to acquire the remains of bankrupt crypto lender Celsius. It also invested in crypto projects like Aptos and Sui.
- FTX filed for bankruptcy along with 130 of its affiliates nearly a year ago on Nov. 11, as it was unable to honor customer withdrawals amid a bank run-style collapse due to misappropriation of customer deposits. The exchange’s founder Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty of seven counts of fraud and conspiracy last Thursday. He faces up to 115 years in prison and his sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 28, 2024.
- Under John Ray III, a recovery specialist who oversaw the bankruptcy of Enron, FTX has recovered around US$7.3 billion in assets and is considering restarting the exchange, Andy Dietderich, one of the firm’s bankruptcy attorneys at Sullivan & Cromwell LL, said in a court hearing in April.
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