FTX Trading Ltd. and its affiliated debtors have announced a landmark settlement with their Bahamian subsidiary, FTX Digital Markets Ltd., amid ongoing liquidation proceedings. This agreement, pending court approval, promises a novel approach to handling the complex legal challenges stemming from the group’s collapse.
FTX Strikes Deal with Bahamian Subsidiary, Paving Way for Fair Asset Distribution Amid Liquidation
The settlement, embodied in a Global Settlement Agreement, marks a significant step in addressing the repercussions of the FTX group’s downfall. The agreement is conditioned on the approval of both the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware and the Supreme Court of the Bahamas. This collaboration between FTX Trading, its debtors, and the Joint Official Liquidators of FTX Digital Markets, charts a path forward for the resolution of this high-profile bankruptcy case.
Under the terms of the agreement, FTX Debtors and FTX Digital Markets will synchronize their assets to facilitate equitable distributions to FTX.com customers. The announcement says the coordination aims to ensure that customers receive comparable relative distributions simultaneously, a move that underscores the parties’ commitment to fairness for affected customers in both jurisdictions.
“The unique challenges raised by the conflicting filings of the FTX Debtors and FTX Digital Markets have been some of the toughest the team has faced,” said John. J. Ray III, FTX’s CEO and chief restructuring officer. “But we recognized at the beginning that we have an overlapping constituency: FTX.com customers. I am thrilled to have achieved a settlement so clearly in customer interests, one that also respects the important role to be played by the Joint Official Liquidators and The Bahamas in the global recovery effort.”
An interesting feature of the settlement is the option for FTX.com customers to choose the jurisdiction—either the Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. or the liquidation proceeding in the Bahamas—for reconciling and receiving their claims. This choice, the debtors believe, will not result in material economic differences for claim holders, offering a flexible solution for customers impacted by the collapse.
The agreement also addresses the valuation of customer claims, stipulating that all claims for cash or digital assets will be assessed in U.S. dollars as of the respective petition dates. This valuation excludes non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and aims to minimize discrepancies in the administration of proceedings in both jurisdictions.
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