FTX Estate Sells Off Remaining Anthropic Holdings Amid Bankruptcy Proceedings

The FTX estate, led by CEO John Ray III, has divested its remaining shares in Anthropic, the AI startup known for its chatbot Claude, as revealed in the firm’s recent bankruptcy filings.

According to the filings, FTX sold the remaining 15 million shares for approximately $30 each, resulting in proceeds exceeding $450 million.

The sale brings the total earnings from FTX’s initial $500 million investment in Anthropic to around $1.3 billion, resulting in a profit of roughly $800 million.

Notably, the price per share for this second sale matched that of the first sale conducted in March.

Leading the buyers in this round was global venture capital fund G Squared, which acquired approximately one-third of the remaining shares, equivalent to 4.5 million shares, for $135 million.

Other venture capital funds constituted the majority of the remaining 20 buyers involved in the acquisition of Anthropic shares.

Cost of FTX Bankruptcy Surges

In parallel to these developments, the cost of the FTX bankruptcy has surged past $500 million in legal and administrative fees, as reported by The Block.

FTX creditors have expressed concerns regarding a potential conflict of interest, as the primary law firm managing FTX’s bankruptcy, Sullivan and Cromwell, had previously represented FTX.

The situation has prompted the appointment of an independent examiner and triggered a class-action lawsuit.

The New York Times’ analysis from last year revealed that law firms have charged hundreds of millions of dollars in fees for crypto company bankruptcies.

FTX CEO John Ray has submitted a bill of $5.6 million to the estate, reflecting his hourly rate of $1,300 since the initiation of the case.

The estate intends to repay at least 118% of allowed claims, measured in dollar value at the time of FTX’s bankruptcy filing, to 98% of its creditors.

Former FTX Co-CEO Sentenced To 7.5 Years

Ryan Salame, former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, has been handed a 7.5-year prison sentence by a federal judge after pleading guilty to two felony charges.

The sentencing took place on 28 May 2024 in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, with Judge Lewis Kaplan presiding over the case.

Salame entered a guilty plea in September 2023 and has been awaiting sentencing.

As reported, Salame requested leniency from the court in the form of an 18-month sentence.

Last month, Bankman-Fried filed to appeal his conviction and sentence for fraud and conspiracy charges.

The disgraced crypto boss was convicted last November after a month-long trial on seven different charges and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Meanwhile, the FTX bankruptcy estate has outlined its target to initiate repayments to customers by the end of 2024, as disclosed during a meeting of FTX Digital’s Joint Official Liquidators in the Bahamas.

The FTX bankruptcy consists of two distinct processes, including the Chapter 11 bankruptcy being overseen by a Delaware court in the United States and the official liquidation of FTX Digital, the Bahamas-based subsidiary of FTX.