Recently submitted court filings to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware have shown a sequence of financial transactions that preceded the decline of FTX in November 2022. The aforementioned papers suggest that the majority of these transactions primarily favored individuals who hold influential positions inside the business.
However, it’s essential to note that FTX debtors have stated that the accuracy and completeness of this data cannot be guaranteed, and they disclaim any liability for potential errors or omissions.
Sam Trabucco, the former co-CEO of Alameda Research, benefited from a $2.51 million transfer from the company to the American Yacht Group in March last year.
Remarkably, just a few months after this transaction, Trabucco publicly acknowledged ownership of a yacht while announcing his resignation through a tweet in August 2022.
Court filing in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. Source: Kroll
It’s been an incredibly formative experience working with @AlamedaTrabucco. I’ve missed having him around in recent months, but I’m proud of all the other Alameda employees who have stepped up and more excited than ever about our future. I hope he has a great time on his boat! https://t.co/HqA2gz0FvL
— Caroline (@carolinecapital) August 24, 2022
The filings also imply that Alameda Research was possibly aware of misconduct by Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, but did not take any action. This lack of action eventually led to Alameda’s collapse, resulting in significant losses for investors.
These revelations have cast a negative spotlight on the cryptocurrency industry, which has long struggled to distance itself from associations with financial misconduct.
Sam Trabucco’s Timely Resignation
It appears that the yacht payment may have been a parting gesture to Trabucco, as a farewell message from his co-CEO at the time, Caroline Ellison, referenced it in a light-hearted manner.
Trabucco, who was one of the early hires at Alameda, decided to resign from the now-defunct hedge fund on August 24, 2022, citing an inability to continue justifying his role and a desire to prioritize other aspects of his life.
Interestingly, this decision to step down occurred just months before both Alameda and FTX faced bankruptcy. Notably, Trabucco was not implicated in any charges against the companies or their top executives.
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Since then, he has maintained a low profile, with his last social media post dated November 8, where he expressed sympathy for those affected by the FTX collapse.
Cash Payments To FTX Executives
Additionally, the court filings disclose a series of cash payments made to former FTX executives, including Bankman-Fried, Gary Wang, Nishad Singh, Darren Wong, and Constance Wang, all within the year leading up to the company’s collapse.
According to the documents, these payments totaled over $3 billion and were unrelated to legitimate operational expenses. Bankman-Fried received a staggering $2.2 billion, with Nishad Singh and Gary Wang receiving $587 million and $246 million, respectively.
Bankman-Fried is currently in detention at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York, facing accusations of witness tampering. His trial is scheduled for October 2 this year.
Featured image from Cryptoknowmics