SBF Defends FTX: ‘We Had $8 Billion, Not Insolvency’
The post SBF Defends FTX: ‘We Had $8 Billion, Not Insolvency’ appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
Sam Bankman-Fried on Friday pushed back against the common view of FTX’s collapse, saying the exchange was not insolvent when it failed in November 2022. According to a document posted on X on October 31, 2025, his team argues the company suffered a sudden liquidity run rather than a balance-sheet shortfall. The filing claims there are roughly $14.6 billion in estate assets versus about $8 billion in customer claims. Claims Of Solvency And Asset Totals Bankman-Fried’s filing asserts that roughly $8 billion of customer liabilities never left the exchange’s estate. It says legal and advisory costs have been sizable — roughly $1 billion — but that large asset recoveries since 2022 mean creditors are in line for healthy payouts. Reports have disclosed that 98% of creditors have already been repaid about 120% of their claims, and the filing projects final customer repayments could fall between 119% and 143%. [SBF says:] This is where the money went. https://t.co/HVRwEw5Z1k https://t.co/5DrA13L5YE pic.twitter.com/O6q77DvmTn — SBF (@SBF_FTX) October 31, 2025 The document shifts blame in part to outside advisers and the emergency management team brought in after the collapse. It names the law firm Sullivan & Cromwell and interim CEO John J. Ray III as having steered the bankruptcy process in ways that, the filing contends, made rescue or rapid resolution harder. The tone is defensive, and the numbers are presented as evidence that the estate can cover claims. Critics Challenge The Account But not everyone accepts that account. Based on reports from on-chain investigators and others, critics say the figures don’t settle the key question: was FTX solvent at the moment customers tried to withdraw funds? On-chain researcher ZachXBT and other analysts point out that the value of many recovered assets has risen since November 2022, and that using today’s prices to declare past…
Filed under: News - @ October 31, 2025 11:58 pm