FTX had valued its assets between US$10 billion to US$50 billion, and listed more than 130 affiliated companies around the world, according to its bankruptcy filing.Alameda Research - filed the bankruptcy petitionThis week’s developments marked a shocking turn of events for Bankman-Fried, who was hailed as somewhat of a savior earlier this year when he helped shore up a number of cryptocurrency companies that ran into financial trouble.
A debate formed on social media about whether the exchange was hacked or a company insider had stolen funds - a possibility that cryptocurrency analysts couldn’t rule out. Exactly how much money is involved is unclear, but analytics firm Elliptic estimated Saturday that US$477 million was missing from the exchange. FTX's new CEO John Ray III said it wasPeople who own bitcoin should be OK if they keep them off exchanges such as FTX that effectively work as a “crypto-casino gambling website,” said Cory Klippsten, the CEO of financial services firm Swan Bitcoin.
“Any exchange is a security risk,” said Klippsten. Some are more reputable than others, but he said a better option is to take control of your digital assets. “With bitcoin, you have the option to take self-custody and take your coins off the exchange,” he said.