Cryptocurrency exchange FTX filed for bankruptcy on 11/11/2022. An investigation is open into whether the crypto assets were stolen and all digital assets have been taken offline. They were trading for an estimated $400 million, according to crypto risk management firm Elliptic.Ryne Miller, general counsel of FTX, in a tweet, stated that the company was “initiating precautionary measures” and transferring all its digital assets to cold storage, that is, disconnected from the internet. According to the quoted Friday announcement, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Although the theft is not yet confirmed, according to Elliptic, US$473 million worth of FTX crypto assets would have been stolen. Miller said alarms went off when “unauthorized transactions” were detected, mitigating the damage. He added that “anomalies regarding wallet movements linked to the consolidation of FTX balances on exchanges are being investigated.”
Hackers would be rapidly converting stablecoins and other tokens to ether, to prevent hacked funds from being seized.
Sam Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO of FTX resigned and lost his $16 billion fortune. According to the bankruptcy filing, FTX has between $10 billion and $50 billion of estimated assets and liabilities.