von • John Ray, the new CEO of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, has expressed interest in reviving the exchange.
• Ray has set up a task force to explore the possibility of bringing the exchange back.
• The company has recovered about $5.5 billion in liquid assets since Ray’s takeover.
The crypto industry was shocked in October 2020 when popular exchange FTX declared bankruptcy and its CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, stepped down amid accusations of criminal misconduct. The scandal left thousands of customers in limbo, as the exchange owed them a total of $8 billion in deposits.
In November, John Ray was brought in as the new Chief Executive Officer of FTX with the task of turning the company around. Since then, Ray has been working diligently to recover assets and explore the possibility of reviving the exchange. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Jan. 19, Ray revealed that he had set up a task force to investigate the feasibility of bringing FTX back to life.
According to Ray, customers have been supportive of the idea, believing that the technology FTX offers is worth reviving. He also said that the company had recovered about $5.5 billion in liquid assets of $1.7 billion cash, $3.5 billion of crypto assets, and $3 million of securities. However, he noted that tracking down the full amount could take months since the exchange had „no record keeping whatsoever“.
However, despite the optimism, Ray has warned that the revival of FTX could take some time. He said that the task force is still in the early stages of exploring the idea and that he wanted to make sure that customers are taken care of before proceeding. „Everything is on the table,“ he said. „If there’s a path forward on that, then we will not only explore it, we will do it.“
It remains to be seen if FTX will be able to make a comeback, but Ray’s efforts have given customers hope that they will eventually be able to access their funds. With the task force continuing to investigate the possibilities, only time will tell if the exchange will be able to make a triumphant return.
