A recent court ruling has granted FTX permission to
sell approximately $873 million worth of assets held in trust. Around $700
million of these assets are from Grayscale’s primary offering, the Grayscale
Bitcoin Trust (GBTC).
The approval, dated November 29 and issued by a
bankruptcy court in Delaware, enables the defunct crypto exchange to liquidate
holdings in trusts managed by Grayscale Investments and Bitwise. It marks a
significant step in repaying creditors impacted by the collapse of the
exchange.
The authorization was prompted by a motion filed by
FTX’s debtors on November 3, requesting the sale of six cryptocurrency trusts,
including the GBTC, Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE),
and Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund.
FTX’s holdings in Grayscale, notably 22 million
units of GBTC and 6.3 million shares of ETHE comprise a substantial portion of
the assets marked for sale. The total amount of these assets is $691 million
and approximately $106 million, respectively.
The sale of the sanctioned assets involves FTX’s
stakes in various trusts issued by Grayscale Investments, which are valued at
$807 million. Additionally, it includes a stake at Bitwise valued at $66
million.
Grayscale Investments, renowned for selling
investments linked to various digital currencies, structures, and manages trusts
through which buyers acquire shares rather than holding cryptocurrencies.
FTX, under the leadership of John J. Ray III, has
been working to recuperate assets following the downfall of Sam Bankman-Fried’s
enterprise in November 2022. The efforts have led to the recovery of
approximately $7 billion in assets, with cryptocurrencies
