Two top officials of Sam Bankman-Fried's cryptocurrency empire have admitted to committing fraud. [The Southern District of New York US Attorney announced on Wednesday night](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/21/technology/ftx-fraud-guilty-pleas.html) that two former employees of Sam Bankman-Fried crypto businesses had pled guilty to federal criminal fraud charges and are collaborating in prosecuting the disgraced crypto entrepreneur.

Gary Wang, 29, founded the exchange FTX, and Caroline Ellison, 28, ran the cryptocurrency hedge fund Alameda Research. They played pivotal roles in the development of the global Sam Bankman-Fried crypto empire, which he launched with the creation of Alameda and FTX.

Following last week's fraud complaints against Mr. Bankman-Fried, two federal regulatory agencies, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), filed civil fraud charges against Mr. Wang and Ms. Ellison and Mr. Wang on Wednesday.

## Facing further legal trouble as former employees plead guilty to fraud

[Mr. Bankman-Fried is in detention](/news/article/former-ftx-ceo-sbf-arrested) in the Bahamas after agreeing to be extradited to face trial in the US. The 30-year-old is in an especially precarious legal position due to the criminal and civil allegations leveled against the former top executives.

The US Government has accused him of perpetrating a massive fraud lasting for years that led to FTX filing for bankruptcy last month.

Two of his closest advisors are now helping federal prosecutors with their investigation. The friendship between Mr. Bankman-Fried and Mr. Wang and Ms. Ellison extended beyond that of close colleagues. He lived with them in a lavish condominium on Paradise Island, the Bahamas, where FTX was headquartered.

Prosecutors and regulators have filed charges against Mr. Bankman-Fried, alleging that he misappropriated billions of dollars from his customers to fund his activities. These include purchasing real estate in the Bahamas, trading cryptocurrencies at Alameda, funding political campaigns, and investing in other cryptocurrency companies. They say he bilked crypto trading company clients, financiers, and lenders.


Sam Bankman-Fried's Crypto Execs Admit Fraud

BlockFi, a cryptocurrency [lender](/news/article/crypto-lender-voyager-sells-assets) that declared bankruptcy on 28 November, has filed a plea with a US court to allow withdrawal for clients who have crypto locked in its wallet accounts.

The [bankrupt](https://www.forbes.com/sites/ninabambysheva/2022/12/20/blockfi-motion-to-allow-withdrawals-for-some-customers-poised-for-success/) firm filed the request with the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey on 19 December. If authorised, members can withdraw the cryptocurrency stored on the site. According to the motion, cryptos are kept in wallets belonging to consumers, and the firm has had no legal or equitable interest since it ceased operations on 10 November.

In addition to permitting withdrawals from clients' wallets, the crypto lender is working to enhance the user interface to display transactions accurately. The corporation also intends to perform routine account reconciliation.

## BlockFi withdrawal request applies to particular customers

To clear up any confusion, the firm aims to erase any "attempted" withdrawals from the user interface following the platform pause. The business also noted in the statement that to avoid all doubt, the debtors do not seek to reverse any customer deposits from outside the platform to wallet accounts received post the Platform Pause Time Stamp. 

According to [Twitter](https://twitter.com/TiffanyFong_/status/1604994112943374337?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1604994112943374337%7Ctwgr%5Ee9d42b4167970655ff8ca4c0ccc32bd1b7282d29%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https://cointelegraph.com/news/blockfi-files-motion-to-return-frozen-crypto-to-wallet-users), the crypto company issued an email informing users of the recent court filing. It further stated that it believes clients clearly control their wallet accounts' digital assets. 

“We will seek similar action from the Supreme Court of Bermuda concerning BlockFi Wallet Accounts maintained at BlockFi International Ltd”, the crypto lender added. This motion does not affect withdrawals or transfers from Interest Accounts currently in suspension.

## BlockFi withdrawal halt stems from crypto crash

BlockFi was one of the first companies to fall victim to the early November crypto crash headed by crypto exchange FTX. The crypto lender arranged a $680 million transaction with [FTX](/news/article/ryan-salame-exposed-ftx-truth). As FTX's financial situation deteriorated, the impact on the US grew. 

According to the company's bankruptcy filing, the corporation claimed more than 100,000 creditors and $1 billion to $10 billion in assets and liabilities.


blue image of blockfi logo on image of someone withdrawing crypto

BlockFi Withdrawal Could Resume

Sam Bankman-Fried, the detained founder of the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, reportedly signed documents on 20 December that will see SBF handed over to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents and taken to the United States, where he will face criminal charges.

Bankman-Fried was [reported](https://cointelegraph.com/news/sbf-signs-extradition-papers-set-to-return-to-face-charges-in-the-us) to have agreed to be [extradited](/news/article/former-ftx-ceo-sbf-arrested) to the US just hours after his lawyer told a judge in the Bahamas that he was not ready to consent.

## SBF is to be taken to the US to face criminal charges

According to Bahamas Acting Commissioner of Corrections Doan Cleare, Bankman-Fried signed his surrender documents on Tuesday. Today, SBF will sign separate papers finalising his waiver of rights to fight extradition at the Magistrate's Court in Nassau.
[Bankman-Fried](/news/article/sam-bankman-fried-lost-billions) is expected to be accompanied by FBI agents on a private flight back to the US, where he faces eight counts in an accusation by the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. 

According to the [New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/20/technology/sam-bankman-fried-bail.html), Bankman-Fried's legal team is negotiating with federal prosecutors to allow him to be released on bail if he is extradited to the US.

According to sources, the agreement, which requires the approval of the federal judge overseeing the SBF case, could include highly restrictive conditions such as home custody and electronic monitoring.

## Allegations on SBF 

The Department of Justice has accused SBF of campaign finance violations, commodities and securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire and money laundering, and wire fraud.

If found guilty of all charges, he could face up to 115 years in prison.

[The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) have filed additional charges](/news/article/ftx-boss-denied-bail-in-bahamas) against the founder of FTX for allegedly breaking commodity laws and defrauding investors.

After three years of rapid growth, FTX and numerous related companies filed for bankruptcy last month. The exchange was worth US$32 billion at its peak.

Authorities in the Bahamas and the US continue to investigate the involvement of SBF in FTX's collapse last month. The exchange was headquartered in the Bahamas.



SBF Agrees to Return to US to Face Fraud Charges

According to recent reports, authorities were alerted of the FTX's fraud before it made headlines. [Co-CEO Ryan Salame alerted Bahamian authorities](https://cointelegraph.com/news/ftx-bahamas-co-ceo-ryan-salame-blew-the-whistle-on-ftx-and-sam-bankman-fried) a few days before FTX filed for [bankruptcy](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame) in November.

He alleged that founder Sam Bankman-Fried might have defrauded investors by [transferring money](https://cointelegraph.com/news/alameda-had-unfair-trading-advantage-special-access-to-ftx-funds-cftc-filing) to his sister company, Alameda Research.

## Ryan Salame takes on FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried

Contrary to the vast majority of market rumours, one of the company's top executives, not Changpeng Zhao (CZ) of Binance, was the one who brought down SBF and FTX. The declaration made on Wednesday is the first time an insider's turn against Bankman-Fried has been acknowledged publicly.

According to Bahamian court documents filed on 14 December, Ryan Salame, the former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets (FDM), informed the SCB (Securities Commission of the Bahamas) on 9 November that the company was sending client funds to its sister trading company Alameda Research.

Salame claimed that the transfer was neither authorised nor approved by clients and that the money was intended to compensate for Alameda's financial losses. Furthermore, he disclosed to the SCB that only three people had the authority to transfer client assets to Alameda: the engineer Nishad Singh, the former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, and Zixiao “Gary” Wang, the other co-founder of the company.

Salame claimed that he informed Bankman-Fried and Alameda executives that it was against "normal corporate governance" for client funds to have been mixed with Alameda's.

Following that, Christina Rolle, executive director of the SCB, requested an [investigation](/news/article/ftx-exchange-under-investigation) from the commissioner of the Royal Bahamas Police Force because the information “may have held misappropriation, theft, fraud, or some other crime".

The following day, 10 November, the [SCB froze FDM's assets](https://cointelegraph.com/news/bahamas-securities-regulator-freezes-ftx-assets) and suspended its registration in the country. A provisional liquidator was appointed by the Bahamian Supreme Court to try to save the company's assets.
According to the filings, Salame is believed to be in Washington, DC, and has not spoken publicly since the exchange's downfall.

His most recent public tweet was on 7 November, when he responded "lol" to Binance co-founder Yi He after He explained why the exchange [sold its FTX Token FTT holdings](/news/article/ftx-vs-binance-liquidate-funds).

## The collapse of FTX has had an absurd impact on the industry

Mixing SBF's companies' funds was a significant issue in the FTX scandal. In recent weeks, another former executive from FTX's affiliated companies is thought to have been assisting authorities.

On 4 December, images purportedly showing Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison in a coffee shop near the US Attorney's Office fueled rumours. Following the company crash, the cryptocurrency community believes she may have made a deal with authorities. 

Bankman-Fried is, to date, the only person charged in connection with FTX and Alameda so far. He is [accused](/news/article/ftx-boss-denied-bail-in-bahamas) of money laundering, political campaign finance violations, and wire and securities fraud.

Bankman-Fried, Wang, Singh, and Ellison are said to have run a "wirefraud" group chat on Signal, the encrypted messaging app, to send sensitive information about FTX and Alameda's operations. Bankman-Fried denied any knowledge of or participation in the group.


red image of ftx logo on mobile phone. Ryan Salame sitting in foreground. 

Co-CEO Ryan Salame Exposes FTX Truth

A [judge in the Bahamas has refused bail for Sam Bankman-Fried](https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-63967010.amp), the founder and former boss of the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX. According to the most recent sources, he will be detained by Bahamian authorities following his [arrest](/news/article/former-ftx-ceo-sbf-arrested) on 12 December, 2022.

Joyann Ferguson-Pratt, the judge in the case, has scheduled an extradition hearing for 8 February, 2023. The hearing was arranged in response to the decision to deny the former FTX boss bail.

## Ex-FTX boss in court

During the hearing, the attorney for the former FTX boss asked the judge whether SBF might be released on a $250,000 bond. The lawyer argued that his release is required since he requires daily medication.

Prosecutors in the Bahamas resisted the proposal, claiming it violated a treaty with the United States. The attorneys also stated that defendants should be imprisoned while extradition procedures were underway under the treaty provisions.

Bankman-Fried notified the judge that he would not forgo his right to contest the extradition. He then hinted that he could desire to stay in the Bahamas on purpose.

Bankman-Friend, wearing a blue suit without a tie, dropped his head and hugged his parents when the judge ruled that his danger of flight was "very severe". The judge ordered him to be detained in the Bahamas until 8 February.

## Allegations on FTX boss

After the Royal Bahamas Police was informed of a secret indictment by US prosecutors, they arrested SBF on Monday. The arrest was sparked by an unsealed indictment which included eight charges against SBF. These included conspiracy and wire fraud, for allegedly abusing billions of dollars in client payments before his cryptocurrency empire's stunning collapse last month.

Furthermore, the [SEC](/news/article/sec-crypto-enforcement-warning), CFTC, and the US Department of Justice filed complaints against Bankman-Fried on Tuesday for suspected securities and commodities fraud. Bahamas government officials are conducting civil and criminal investigations against him and FTX.

The day's events concluded a remarkable fall from grace for SBF, who created a fortune worth more than $20 billion as he rode a cryptocurrency boom to grow FTX into one of the world's largest exchanges.


red image of bankman fried in front of image of man in handcuffs. 

Former FTX Boss Denied Bail in the Bahamas

The founder and disgraced CEO of the failed crypto exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, was arrested on Monday after the US Government filed a criminal indictment.

These charges follow weeks of speculation that the FTX CEO misused customer funds.

## FTX CEO arrested

Sam Bankman-Fried, popularly known as SBF, was arrested by the Royal Bahamas Police Force. The police said that the arrest was initiated following receipt of formal notification from the US Government that it filed criminal charges and is likely to request that SBF be extradited.

In a statement, the Bahamas Police confirmed that Bankman-Fried was taken into custody without a hitch at his Albany apartment complex at 6pm.

SBF's arrest resulted from financial offences alleged in the US which would also be offenses in the Bahamas, the statement said.

A sealed indictment filed by the Southern District of New York was the basis for the arrest. US Attorney Damian Williams confirmed this in a [tweet](https://twitter.com/SDNYnews/status/1602451395910803457). 

Last month, the exchange filed for bankruptcy in the US after it imploded [almost overnight](/news/article/sam-bankman-fried-lost-billions), leaving customers unable to access their funds. According to court filings, FTX owed its largest creditors around $3.1 billion.

The dramatic fall from grace has been the talk of the market. The exchange's CEO was expected to testify about the [company's collapse](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/09/technology/ftx-text-messages.html) in Congress on Tuesday.

## Bankman-Fried future looks clouded

According to the [New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/12/business/ftx-sam-bankman-fried-bahamas.html), the charges filed against Bankman-Fried include wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, securities fraud, security fraud conspiracy, and money laundering.

However, it's still unclear whether customers will be able to recover some, if not all, of their funds. A 2 November report on ties between FTX and Alameda, a trading company also controlled by the FTX CEO, exposed that Alameda's balance sheet was overexposed to FTT currency (FTX's token).

According to the extradition treaty between the US and the Bahamas, defendants may be returned to the US provided their offenses carry a minimum one-year sentence in both countries.

The 30-year-old has recently disregarded legal counsel and increased his public appearances, providing his version of his company's abrupt failure and typically portraying himself as an inept CEO.

"I didn't knowingly commit fraud," he said during a BBC at the weekend. SBF told the interviewer he didn't want any of this to happen and added that he was "not nearly as competent" as he believed himself to be.



red image of crime scene with pictures of Sam Bankman-Fried and a sign that says "bahamas"

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Arrested

Following the collapse of FTX last month, pressure is rising on US regulatory body the SEC to beef up enforcement of major crypto sector centres. 

The failure of [FTX](https://www.wsj.com/articles/sec-faces-calls-to-boost-crypto-exchange-enforcement-after-ftx-collapse-11670474070) focused attention on crypto exchanges, which serve as key hubs for individual investors and provide services such as digital-coin sales, financing, and asset storage. Despite spending more than six years studying various sector aspects, the Securities and Exchange Commission regulatory agency still needs to sue a major cryptocurrency exchange.

According to sources familiar with the topic and regulatory disclosures, the [SEC](/news/article/xrp-vs-sec-lawsuit-update) is investigating exchanges such as Coinbase Global Inc. and the US operations of Binance and FTX. It has penalised or sued dozens of token creators over the past six years.

According to the SEC, several cryptocurrencies qualify as [securities](/news/article/sec-vs-ripple-news) that should have traded under stock and bond laws. The firm's Chair Gary Gensler says that exchanges are breaching the law by selling unregistered securities and failing to follow standards that the NYSE and Nasdaq Stock Market follow.

## Lawyers believe SEC crypto enforcement is not enough

Some attorneys argue that, despite such claims, regulatory enforcement measures have yet to go far enough as the sector has matured and ordinary people are committing their assets to crypto enterprises. Mr Gensler risks substantial criticism if he does not get things going", according to the report "former SEC enforcement attorney John Reed Stark.

It was a flaw in their plan not to pursue these entities, Mr. Stark explained. 

The exchange kept trading six assets after the SEC sued a former Coinbase employee in July, alleging that the business sold seven improperly issued securities. They could have sued Coinbase, but they chose not to. According to a Coinbase spokesperson, the company thinks that none of the six digital currencies are securities.

## Crypto exchanges believe SEC is using the wrong crypto enforcement laws

According to industry lawyers, the SEC crypto enforcement approach is exhibiting signs of wear and tear after years of the SEC utilising its enforcement arm to drive the industry into its supervision.

According to some industry attorneys, the activities of cryptocurrency exchanges are so unlike those of stock exchanges that compliance with their standards is impossible.


sec logo with hands shaking in the background

SEC Crypto Enforcement Warning

A [report](https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/ftx-hires-forensic-team-to-probe-money-trail-11670446435?mod=lead_feature_below_a_pos1) from the Wall Street Journal (7 December) claims that FTX has formed a team of financial experts to trace billions of dollars in “missing” customer funds from the company.

The new management at FTX is looking to get to the bottom of the entire crisis, and they’re not aiming for a slow process. The team has outsourced the matter to a group of financial forensic experts to find out how and where the funds could have gone missing.

To be specific, [AlixPartners](https://www.alixpartners.com/), a firm that specialises in financial matters, has been trusted with this mountain of a task. This advisory committee will be led by Matt Jacques, formerly with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a chief accountant.

FTX will try to recover as many of the missing assets as possible with the help of this newly formed committee. Furthermore, the crypto company will need further assistance to rebuild its financial infrastructure from the ground up.

## Summary of the FTX crash

If you're even the slightest bit involved in the crypto industry, you've probably heard the name FTX pop up a few times over the last couple of months - and not in a good light. The crypto company has been under fire for letting almost $450 million of customer funds disappear.

The whole debacle and the story of "[who’s to blame](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame)" is a mystery, even after months of speculation.

It's not the first time the company's CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, has been alleged to have mismanaged customer funds. In an interview with [Vox](https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/23462333/sam-bankman-fried-ftx-cryptocurrency-effective-altruism-crypto-bahamas-philanthropy), Bankman-Fried claimed to have passed customer funds through Alameda Research, FTX’s sister company. He did admit his lack of control over his company’s operations, as he [tweeted](https://twitter.com/sbf_ftx/status/1590709166515310593?s=46&t=Br1_HGNzUBwspKZ7pF6myA), "I'm sorry. I f--d up" after the fiasco broke.

The company filed for bankruptcy in November. It's difficult to see them making a comeback, largely due to two major factors:

•	The global negative PR that the company has been a victim of over the period of several months.

•	A low probability of recovering the lost funds.

FTX’s new management will need a miracle to even get crumbs from this entire mess.



red image of money with sam bankman-fried in the foreground

FTX Brings in Financial Experts

Elon Musk, the CEO of both Tesla and Twitter, [tweets his thoughts on Sam Bankman-Fried's reported donation to the Democratic Party](https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1598993109786189826). Musk believes the co-founder and former CEO of the defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX sent far more money to the party than what was officially acknowledged.

Replying to a tweet by Will Manidis, CEO of ScienceIO, which mentioned that SBF donated $40M to the Democrats, Elon said he believes the amount contributed by the former CEO of the fallen crypto exchange FTX is far bigger than what has been publicly announced.

![elon.PNG](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/prod-monitalks-media/elon_2943e6d6a1.PNG)

## SBF donating to political parties - Not for the first time

It is not the first time San Bankman-Fried has donated to a political party. He has previously acknowledged giving to the Republican Party in a covert manner.

 In 2020, he was reported to have given $10 million to assist Carrick Flynn, a failed Democratic candidate for a House seat in Oregon, while also giving $5.2 million to Joe Biden's presidential campaign.

He gave Democrats $39,884,256, according to Opensecrets, before FTX collapsed and had to file for [bankruptcy](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame). The exchange meltdown caused millions of dollars in losses for investors and users. A probe into FTX's handling of consumer money improperly is now underway. The fall of FTX sparked a contagion that has caused several other platforms and [companies to struggle and some to collapse](https://cryptopotato.com/how-wide-does-ftx-contagion-spread-the-affected-companies-so-far).

Then Elon Musk tweets his allegation that the publicly declared $40M donation is incorrect and the actual amount could be anything above $1B. The internet is already flooded with articles and comments alleging that Bankman-Fried donated this amount to a political party to avoid going to jail.

Meanwhile, SBF has been invited to participate in an investigational hearing set on 13 December, 2022, by Democratic House Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters and Republican Ranking Member Patrick McHenry.

The crypto community, alongside investors who lost their money in the FTX fall, is angry and waiting for justice. What is the future of SBF and will the investors get their money back? These are some of the questions people are looking to get answers to. Clarity will only come after a proper investigation.


Elon Musk Tweets 'Where Did the Money Go?'

US Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo has emphasized the need for the United States to collaborate with other countries to develop cryptocurrency regulations effectively.

This development comes a few weeks after FTX, the second most popular crypto exchange, based in the Bahamas, [became insolvent](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame). CEO Sam Bankman-Fried declared that the protocol did not have sufficient assets to meet customers' demands.

Speaking at the [Reuters NEXT](https://events.reutersevents.com/next) conference, Adeyemo said countries must enact regulatory laws to protest investors, promote financial stability, and block illicit crypto users.

"This is a global phenomenon," Adeyemi said. He added that the US would work closely with international partners to design a regulatory framework to protect the global economy, especially with crypto innovations.

The Deputy Treasury Secretary noted that since FTX was not based in the US, regulatory efforts must be broadened.

## Crypto regulation post-FTX collapse

FTX declared insolvency and Bankman-Fried resigned from his position as CEO on 11 November, a few days after the world's biggest crypto exchange, Binance, dumped a deal to rescue the exchange. This was followed by angry traders pulling $6 billion out.

As a result, Rostin Behnam, chairman of the Commodity Future Trading Commission (CFTC), urged lawmakers on Thursday to quickly design a regulatory framework for crypto assets.

After several congressional hearings to examine the collapse of FTX, members of the Senate Agriculture Committee asked Behnam if the FTX collapse would have been controlled with better oversight.

However, the recent setback in the crypto market has not affected the banking sector. This is according to Janet Yellen, the US Treasury Secretary, who remains skeptical about the crypto industry. She believes in the need for adequate regulation.

While speaking at the DealBook event hosted by New York Times, the Treasury Secretary said adequate customer protection is needed in the crypto sector.

Just like Wally Adeyemo, she agrees that it is important to remain open to financial innovations, given that cryptocurrencies can lower the cost of cross-border transactions and promote financial inclusion.

"I have been skeptical, and I remain quite skeptical," Yellen said. She noted that recent developments are not centered on financial inclusion and cross-border payment.



Wally Adeyemo Calls for Crypto Regulation

The crypto winter has been a bloodbath for Bitcoin investors. Many have depleted their portfolios as they scramble to save what is left. However, following the fall of FTX, there's been an uptick in Bitcoin holders accumulating BTC in cold storage.

## FTX fall motivates self-custody

Recently, new highs were reached in the number of wallets holding 1 BTC or more. This is a positive indication that investors are determined to keep their Bitcoin holdings even when the price declines. Likewise, the number of wallets holding 10 BTC or less has also reached a record high.

The recent problem of insolvency among centralized exchanges has been linked to this recent accumulation in cold storage. The recent crashes of [FTX](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/nov/18/how-did-crypto-firm-ftx-collapse), Voyager, Genesis, and other crypto firms have triggered negative sentiments in the market. Investors are increasingly worried they might lose their BTC if the exchange goes out of business.

Data from [Glassnode](https://studio.glassnode.com/metrics?a=BTC&m=distribution.BalanceExchanges&s=1570361904&source=content_type%3Areact%7Cfirst_level_url%3Aarticle%7Csection%3Amain_content%7Cbutton%3Abody_link&u=1587222400&zoom=) shows that, as a result, exchange balances have drastically decreased, with more than 177.9k BTC removed from exchanges in the last month. This trend will likely continue as investors become more aware of the risks of putting their money in centralized exchanges.

Bitcoin investors' withdrawals from centralized exchanges have also impacted exchange supply. Bitcoin available on exchanges has fallen to 11.99%, its lowest since December 2017.

Checkmate, the lead analyst at Glassnode, noted that this looks like at least a short-term movement towards self-custody, partly out of concern for CEX solvency.

## Hardware wallets enjoy good sales

A downturn in the market generally doesn't inspire the spirit of accumulation among investors. However, hardware wallets like [Trezor](/news/article/why-consider-a-trezor-wallet), Ledger, and ColdCard have experienced a surge in demand for their products.

Josef Ttek is a Bitcoin analyst at Trezor, one of the leading hardware wallet providers. He said there had been a 'dramatic increase' in demand for Trezor devices and the Trezor Suite.

"Normally, a bear market is rather a quiet period for us," he added. "This uplift in sales only shows how big of an impact the collapses of FTX and BlockFi have on people's trust in custodian services."

Trezor noted a [300% increase](https://cointelegraph.com/news/trezor-reports-300-surge-in-sales-revenue-due-to-ftx-contagion) in hardware sales following the FTX fiasco. Also, Relai, a Bitcoin exchange headquartered in Switzerland, has seen a similar rise in users and Bitcoin investors using their platform to trade.



Bitcoin Investors Turn to Self-Custody

Crypto lender [BlockFi](/news/article/is-blockfi-bankrupt), which offered unsecured crypto loans to retail investors, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy late Monday. There had been indications that the FTX scandal could render crypto lender [BlockFi bankrupt](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/28/business/blockfi-bankruptcy-cryptocurrency-ftx.html?smtyp=cur&smid=tw-nytimes) due to its exposure to the fallen exchange. It is now official.

[BlockFi had suspended withdrawals](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-11/blockfi-pauses-withdrawals-says-can-no-longer-operate-as-usual) soon after the collapse of FTX, citing significant exposure to the Bahamas-based exchange. The role of [FTX's failure](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame) in making BlockFi bankrupt is becoming more evident by the day. 

BlockFi says it owes $275m to FTX US in the bankruptcy filings before a New Jersey court. This amount was part of a $400m lifeline FTX offered BlockFi in June when it began experiencing a liquidity crunch following the collapse of crypto lenders Voyager and Celsius. There was also an option for FTX to buy BlockFi. These facts are only becoming public as the scope of the FTX scandal widens.

BlockFi's bankruptcy filing indicates that the firm had $10 billion in assets and liabilities. While the company said in its bankruptcy filing that it was working to recover obligations owed by several counterparties, it adds that any recovery efforts risked delays from FTX's bankruptcy proceedings.

## BlockFi bankrupt: What next?

BlockFi had been in trouble with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over its lending activities. It had been fined $100m by the SEC for not registering its crypto lending products as securities. In declaring BlockFi bankrupt, the filing said it still owes the regulator $30m, among other sums owed to more than 100,000 creditors.

The extent of BlockFi's entanglement with FTX continues to unravel. Bankruptcy filings reveal BlockFi made nearly $680 million in collateralized crypto loans to former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried's Alameda Research hedge fund, even as it got a financial reprieve from the FTX exchange. 

Initial reports indicate that billions of dollars in the FTX balance sheet are unaccounted for. Where FTX got the funds, it used to bail out BlockFi in June is now a subject of speculation. Answers may come in the weeks ahead.


BlockFi Bankrupt - Court Documents

Following the fall of the [FTX](https://www.ft.com/content/5d826ca9-389e-41ec-a38b-da43211da974) exchange and the market instability, Bill Ackman, the hedge fund manager and investor, says he remains optimistic about cryptocurrencies.

In a recent Twitter thread, the founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management [stated](https://twitter.com/BillAckman/status/1594456744851558402) that, despite current issues, crypto is here for the long run. However, he said there is a need to enhance regulation and eliminate fraudulent individuals from the industry.

## Who is Bill Ackman?  

Bill Ackman is a billionaire American investor who recently advocated for [eliminating regulatory barriers](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-09/bill-ackman-calls-on-new-york-to-remove-crypto-barriers) and relaxing laws in New York to turn the city into a crypto centre. He is also an active participant in several [cryptocurrency](https://cointelegraph.com/blockchain-for-beginners/what-is-a-cryptocurrency-a-beginners-guide-to-digital-money) initiatives.

He believes crypto will stay and can benefit society and substantially build the global economy with proper control and regulation. 
However, he claims that technology needs to improve to combat its capacity to be used to perpetrate fraud.

The issue is that dishonest promoters might generate tokens solely to facilitate pump-and-dump strategies. Some cryptocurrencies are utilised for fraudulent reasons rather than for [legal company development](/news/article/rishi-sunak-crypto-believer-uk-pm).

## Bill Ackman is no longer a crypto sceptic

The investor now sees crypto as having "the ability to help society and develop the global economy substantially". 
He added that it could enable the establishment of essential enterprises and technology that could not previously exist.

It can also incentivise venture participants to gain access to a global workforce to promote a project.

Ackman highlighted that appropriate regulation and oversight would be critical in moving the technology forward.

The hedge fund manager's tweet follows the [FTX crash](/news/article/gemini-crypto-exchange-falls-prey). According to sources, he congratulated former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried for admitting his faults in a tweet but afterward deleted it.

In his post, [the investor](https://www.theblock.co/post/188684/bill-ackman-says-crypto-is-here-to-say-but-highlights-a-curious-use-case) used Helium, a blockchain-based network, as a favourable example of cryptocurrency.


Bill Ackman Bullish on Crypto

FTX’s [decline](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame) has rattled the crypto market. Digital asset lending firms and exchanges are at the receiving end and falling like houses of cards. The [Gemini crypto exchange](https://www.gemini.com/) of the Winklevoss twins has also become one of the victims of FTX contagion. 

On 16 November, Gemini's Earn product experienced delays in withdrawals due to an outage. Curiously, the outage occurred just after its partner, [Genesis Global](https://genesis.global/), suspended withdrawals on its platform. Genesis took the step in the wake of the fall of the [Sam Bankman-Fried](/news/article/sam-bankman-fried-lost-billions) corporation.  

Earlier, the firm acknowledged its partner’s suspension of withdrawals in a [Twitter thread](https://twitter.com/Gemini/status/1592873279232278532). It also announced that its team is working with the crypto lender to ensure quick recovery of funds of the Earn program. 

It assured its clients that these events would not affect the activities on the [Gemini](/news/article/gemini-crypto-review) platform. However, a couple of hours later, it experienced an outage that shook investors' trust.

## Gemini crypto exchange outage caused $485m outflows

The server outage on the platform halted the operations affecting the withdrawals and deposits. However, it has only been down for about an hour. Per its official statement on Twitter, the disruption occurred at its primary databases due to the Amazon Web Services EBS.

The exchange's team swiftly recovered it and announced it was "fully back online".

![gemini exchange tweet](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/prod-monitalks-media/geminitweet_50471f672f.webp)
 
Moreover, it reassured its users about the safety of their funds. Nonetheless, the disruption created panic among the users, which resulted in mass outflows. 

According to [Nansen](https://www.nansen.ai/), the blockchain insights firm, more than $485 million has been withdrawn from the exchange in the past 24 hours. This is the highest outflow for any exchange in the same period. On the other hand, the inflows for the platform were only $78 million.  

## The unstoppable FTX contagion

Gemini and Genesis Global are just some digital asset service providers that suffered after the FTX collapse. Various other firms are moving towards insolvency. Crypto lenders [BlockFi](/news/article/ftx-collapse-blockfi-suspend-withdrawals) and SALT are recognised names among them. This collapse may affect many other significant firms in the future as investors' confidence seems to be shaken.


Gemini crypto exchange falls prey to FTX contagion

The[ Bitcoin](/news/article/feds-seize-bitcoin-stolen-crypto-scam) market faces volatility issues as FTX's downfall hits another crypto company, Genesis.

## Genesis Global Trading halts withdrawals and new loan originations

Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, the largest Bitcoin fund, dropped 7% on Wednesday as investors dumped more digital assets following the high-profile collapse of crypto exchange FTX last week.

Genesis Global Trading, a cryptocurrency investment bank, tweeted that the company was [temporarily halting withdrawals and new loan originations services](https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/bitcoin-price-genesis-crypto-latest-b2226380.html) because of FTX's fall.
 
![genesis crypto tweet](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/prod-monitalks-media/genesis1_720fa9e138.webp)

[Genesis](https://twitter.com/GenesisTrading), the most recent victim of FTX volatility, is owned by Digital Currency Group (DCG), which also owns Grayscale.

DCG tweeted that the freezing of Genesis' lending business did not affect the company or its wholly-owned subsidiaries.

Grayscale stated that its products would continue to be fully operational, and its underlying assets would be unaffected. Genesis said that it was working to prevent the same fate as FTX.

The company stated that it had hired the best advisors in the business to explore all potential options.

Further, in a tweet, the company said, "We will deliver a lending business plan next week." The crypto firm claimed that it is working tirelessly to figure out the best lending solutions, including, among other things, sourcing new liquidity.

## Bitcoin volatility

Following the news on Wednesday, the price of Bitcoin fell even further, with the cryptocurrency now trading just for $16.5K.

Bitcoin volatility has seen the value fall by more than 75% since reaching an all-time high of around $69,000 in November 2021. 

Following the collapse of FTX, Bitcoin volatility saw the price fall below $16,000 for the first time since November 2020, after several months of stability.

## Impact of FTX collapse

The collapse of [FTX](/news/article/what-is-ftx) shook the volatile cryptocurrency market, which lost billions of dollars in value.

The consequences of the company’s sudden collapse will probably affect cryptocurrencies for a very long time to come and may even cause broader market declines. Many crypto firms are severely affected by the company's[ bankruptcy news](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame).


Bitcoin Volatility: Price Drops to $16.5K 

The crypto lending firm, [BlockFi](https://blockfi.com/), certainly finds itself in hot waters after the [FTX collapse](/news/article/ftx-collapse-blockfi-suspend-withdrawals). Recently, it suspended withdrawals from client wallets and interest accounts. It is also facing a severe liquidity crisis as the [FTX exchange](/news/article/ftx-exchange-under-investigation) crashed. There are reports suggesting that the firm plans to lay off its workforce. So, is BlockFi bankrupt?

## Is BlockFi bankrupt?

Earlier, the firm denied having a line of credit of around $400 million from FTX. However, later it accepted its affiliation with the crashed exchange. The [Sam Bankman-Fried](/news/article/sam-bankman-fried) owned exchange provided this fund to BlockFi to bail it out in July. As the business has collapsed, it has again created financial problems for the crypto lender. 

Rumours suggest that the crypto lender is pondering filing for insolvency amid this situation. Other than that, it may even sack some of its employees to cut down its expenses. 

Moreover, it has already restricted activities on the platform, suspending withdrawals for its clients. These moves indicate that the firm might have to move towards complete closure. 

## Impact of FTX crash on other crypto firms

FTX collapse has rattled the entire crypto market. BlockFi is not the only platform that is facing issues after the decline of Sam Bankman-Fried’s exchange. Another digital asset lending platform, SALT, has also paused deposits and withdrawals. It has notified its users that “in light of recent industry events”, the firm has taken this step.

![blockfi.png](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/prod-monitalks-media/blockfi_d647bef6a0.png)
 
Furthermore, [SALT](https://saltlending.com/) has admitted that the fall of [SBF companies](/news/article/sam-bankman-fried-lost-billions) has also affected its business. Therefore, it is taking this step as a precautionary measure. However, the platform’s CEO, Shawn Owen, has clarified that it is [not going bust](https://twitter.com/Shawn_OwenJ/status/1592586857509896192). This is a temporary measure. It is to examine how much the events have affected the platform. Nonetheless, it will be effective immediately to limit potential risks.



Layoffs, & paused withdrawal: Is BlockFi bankrupt?

Witnessing the FTX collapse and volatility of the crypto market, German regulator Mark Branson has called for global crypto regulations.
 
The collapse of Bahamas-based FTX, which was widely regarded as one of the most reliable names in the industry until recently, has raised new concerns about the unregulated nature of crypto companies and what safeguards are in place to protect clients' assets. 

Crypto winter has severely affected the market resulting in ongoing crypto failures. Renowned firms have been closed due to liquidity issues. [FTX](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame) is the latest in significant cryptocurrency failures this year, including hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, crypto lender [Celsius](/news/article/celsius-data-breach) Network, broker [Voyager](/news/article/crypto-lender-voyager-sells-assets) Digital and [Nuri bank](/news/article/nuri-bank-users-withdraw-funds).

## Mark Branson's statement at Frankfurt

According to German regulator Mark Branson, [crypto assets must be subject to global rules](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-14/german-regulator-bafin-sees-need-for-global-crypto-rules) if they are to be adopted by mainstream finance and exposed to banks and a broader range of investors.

At a Frankfurt event on Monday, the German regulator stated that the recent crash in digital assets was well-timed because the links between traditional finance and crypto are still limited, implying that it may not pose a risk to financial stability.

When asked about the fallout from [FTX](/news/article/ftx-collapse-blockfi-suspend-withdrawals) Group, Branson avoided mentioning any specific companies and said his comments applied to the industry as a whole.

Continuing his statement, Branson added that consumer protection is the most disturbing aspect noted in recent months.
The BaFin chief stated that cryptocurrency should either be shut out by building a "very, very strong wall" around the conventional banking system or by regulating the industry and seeing if "crypto money is in real competition with fiat money".

According to Branson, cryptocurrency is "massively susceptible to money laundering risks and doesn't have a handle on these". He stated that a set of rules for the industry would need to be addressed on a global scale rather than just in Europe.

Separately, Branson stated that despite recent issues in the cryptocurrency market, he does not anticipate a ripple effect affecting Germany's financial stability.


German Regulator Demands Crypto Regulation

The entire crypto market is reeling from the [crash](/news/article/ftx-collapse-blockfi-suspend-withdrawals) of the FTX exchange. Amid this, the price of all the major cryptocurrencies, including [Bitcoin](/coins/btc), [Ethereum](/coins/eth), and others, have plunged. On the other hand, NFTs have also felt some impact from this crash. But one of the collections that suffered the most is the [Bored Ape Yacht Club](https://boredapeyachtclub.com/) (BAYC) NFT collection.

The data from several sources suggest that the price of NFTs for this project is continually decreasing. One of the primary reasons behind it is the tumbling value of Ether. This has forced the holders to panic sell their digital art collectables. 

## The plunging value of the BAYC NFT collection

The data from [NFT Price Floor](https://nftpricefloor.com/) indicates that the CryptoPunks collection has replaced Bored Ape collectables. The floor price of CryptoPunks is 66.49 ETH, whereas the value for the [Bored Ape Yacht](/news/article/bored-ape-nft) collection is only 52.00 ETH. 

Besides, the data aggregator for collectables, [CryptoSlam](https://cryptoslam.io/bored-ape-yacht-club/sales/summary), further shows that the sales of NFTs have decreased over the past month. Last month, the total traded volume was $31,275,729.82. However, in November, till now it was $26,838,932.67.

## Why is the price falling for the BAYC NFT project? 

It is one of the most popular projects in the digital art market. The falling costs of these NFTs are quite alarming for the collectors. Though there are numerous factors for the decline in its value, [FTX collapse](/news/article/ftx-bankrupt-who-to-blame) is a major one. 

According to Wu Blockchain, the creators of BAYC, Yuga Labs, had stored around 18,000 ETH on the FTX’s Blockfolio for royalties.

![bayc.png](https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/prod-monitalks-media/bayc_7a1534ef34.png)
 
Because of this, its collectables have experienced a more than 10% decline in value. Moreover, the project lost its first position due to the drop in market capitalisation. The collectors are now inclined towards owning a [CryptoPunks](/news/article/jay-z-cryptopunks-nft) collectable instead of this project’s NFTs.


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