FTX has reached a settlement with Bybit, its executives and investment arm Mirana, valued at around $228 million, bringing an end to their lengthy legal dispute over alleged preferential withdrawals prior to FTX’s collapse.
The settlement was submitted on Thursday (Oct. 24) to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the District of Delaware. The resolution marks another key step in FTX’s ongoing efforts to recover assets for impacted customers.
The filing reveals that the FTX bankruptcy estate has agreed to settle its case against the Bybit exchange, securing $175 million in digital assets and an additional $53 million in BIT tokens as part of the settlement.
The court document stated: “Over the past months, the parties have engaged in lengthy, good faith negotiations regarding these claims, and ultimately reached a global settlement reflected in the Settlement Agreement.”
FTX originally aimed to recover approximately $1 billion from Bybit and its affiliate, Mirana, through a lawsuit filed in Delaware in November 2023.
The lawsuit alleged that the companies took advantage of their “VIP” status to withdraw around $327 million just before FTX’s collapse in November 2022. FTX’s advisors claimed that Mirana pressured FTX staff to fast-track their withdrawal requests, allowing them to bypass delays encountered by regular users.
However, the filing says that this arrangement provides “significant net savings for the debtors’ estates.”
FTX bankruptcy plan ahead of Bybit settlement
Earlier this month, ReadWrite reported that FTX customers are set to receive refunds, with up to $16.5 billion recovered under a bankruptcy plan.
John J Ray III, the lawyer who was appointed to handle the bankruptcy process, is reported as saying the approval of the plan was a “significant milestone” in the firm’s efforts to repay the money to people and firms.
“Looking ahead, we are poised to return 100% of bankruptcy claim amounts plus interest for non-governmental creditors through what will be the largest and most complex bankruptcy estate asset distribution in history.”
The former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried was convicted of stealing customer funds before the collapse and was sentenced to 25 years at the end of March 2024.
Featured image: Midjourney