The relaunch of crypto exchange FTX - The Cryptonomist

The FTX crypto exchange, which collapsed in November 2022, could be partially relaunched should Tribe Capital, an American venture capital firm, invest $250 million into it, which is in its plans. Full details below.

Tribe Capital’s plan for the FTX crypto exchange

As anticipated, Tribe Capital is considering injecting capital into the FTX crypto exchange to potentially relaunch it. If this idea succeeds, Tribe Capital would conduct a fundraising campaign amounting to $250 million, of which $100 million would come from its own portfolio and its partners’ funds.

According to Bloomberg, Tribe Capital co-founder Arjun Sethi met with FTX’s creditors’ committee in January and it was at that meeting that he proposed to the committee 9 million customer accounts across FTX’s various internationally operating subsidiaries.

As might be expected, the price of FTX’s native token, FTT, reacted positively to the news, although apparently only at first. Moreover, it is worth noting that Tribe Capital, with its $1.6 billion in assets under management across its entire business, had previously invested in FTX and FTX.US, the US arm of the exchange.

Specifically, Tribe Capital had previously invested 2.6% of its capital in FTX. In any case, the company seems to be very crypto-friendly, as it has also invested in major cryptocurrency companies such as Kraken and Polygon Labs.

Could the FTX crypto exchange be restarted?

As we know, there were rumors in January that crypto exchange FTX, following its implosion in November, might be re-launched altogether. However, the creditors’ committee clarified that, at the moment, no timetable has been set for this.

Moreover, via its Twitter account, the committee said that potentially interested parties should contact them, as noted:

According to the latest sources, it is learned that John Ray III, the current CEO of FTX after Sam Bankman-Fried, is expected to decide whether or not to restart FTX by the second quarter of this year.

Last week, an FTX lawyer indicated that this idea was still in its infancy and that, should it come to fruition, it would require a huge infusion of money.

In addition, John Ray III had specifically stated that FTX’s relaunch could help in the proceedings aimed at reimbursing customers harmed by the exchange’s failure.

However, given the extent of the damage that Sam Bankman-Fried has left in the cryptocurrency ecosystem, it remains to be seen whether anyone would really be willing to get the cryptocurrency exchange back up and running.

Refunds coming for FTX’s European customers

As is well known, the customers in Europe and beyond of FTX, issuer of the FTT token, were severely affected financially when the exchange filed for bankruptcy last November.

Before collapsing, FTX was known for its approach to trading, offering a range of innovative financial products well received by traders around the world. However, the sudden collapse of the exchange left many in a delicate situation, unsure if they would ever be able to recover their funds.

Now, the delicate situation seems to see a light at the end of the tunnel. Indeed, in a statement, the Italian securities regulator, Consob, announced the launch of a website through which users will be able to view their account balances and request a refund of what they are owed.

As a reminder, Consob does not have jurisdiction in this matter, as this falls to CySec, the authority in Cyprus where FTX has its European headquarters. However, Consob’s decision to launch the website is a step in the right direction and could pave the way for other European regulators to follow suit.

However, while the launch of the website is a positive development for FTX’s European clients, it is important to note that it is only the first step in the process of recovering their funds and is not a permanent solution.

According to reports, in order to proceed with a refund, traders will have to provide proof of their account balance, then undergo a verification process, and only then will they get their money back.

As can be expected, the process may also take quite some time, as there are likely to be a significant number of refund requests to process.