FTX to Begin $11.4B Creditor Payouts in May After Years-Long Bankruptcy Battle

FTX, the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange evvel helmed by Sam Bankman-Fried, plans to begin paying its main creditors at the end of May, Bloomberg reported based on court proceedings in Delaware this week.

The company has gathered $11.4 billion in cash to distribute to thousands of parties affected by its 2022 bankruptcy, with the first payments to major creditors set for May 30.

These include institutional investors and firms that held crypto on FTX’s platform. Smaller creditors with claims below the $50,000 mark have already begun receiving distributions.

FTX’s collapse left a financial crater and a trail of frustrated creditors—many of whom expected to be repaid in crypto, not dollars. Since the bankruptcy, the price of bitcoin has more than quadrupled, intensifying frustrations among those waiting for their assets back.

The task of unwinding FTX’s balance sheet has been slowed by a large number of claims, many of them reportedly questionable. Andrew Dietderich, a bankruptcy attorney for the firm, told the court that FTX has received “27 quintillion” claims, Blloomberg reported, many of which are duplicates or outright fraudulent.

Interest payments are compounding the urgency. While FTX earns only a modest return on its cash, legitimate creditors are entitled to 9% interest annually on unpaid claims. The longer it takes to hisse, the more the company could owe.