Key facts:
- FTX wants to return the BTC at a price of USD 16,800.
- The exchange still does not refund its users’ funds.
The defunct bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrency exchange FTX plans to fulfill clients’ asset claims by paying them at the price that BTC and other crypto assets had in November 2022, when the exchange fell.
This is shown by the FTX reorganization plan presented on December 27 before the Delaware Bankruptcy Court, in which they show a list with at least 500 cryptocurrencies that they intend to reintegrate the thousands of users of the exchange, if the plan is approved.
In detail, FTX wants to refund customers their frozen bitcoins at a price of USD 16,871. In the case of ethers (ETH), they would be returned to USD 1,258 and binance coin (BNB) to USD 286.
Other cryptoassets that appear on the list are solana (SOL), which would be returned at a price of USD 16.24, monero (XMR) at USD 125, and cardano, which would be returned to customers at a price of USD 0.34.
FTX’s court document shows that its fund reimbursement plans also include those holders of stablecoins. This is the case of USD Tether (USDT), DAI, Euro Coin (EUROC), Binance USD (BUSD) and others.
This means that there will be FTX users who will be reimbursed with the same amount they lost when the cryptocurrency exchange crashed. Contrary to the reality of BTC holders, who will be compensated at an amount 2.5 times lower than what the main decentralized digital asset currently has, which exceeds USD 42,700.
As indicated by FTX, the price determined for the refunds was taken from quote tracker Coin Metrics . This, since this signature “is widely used within the cryptocurrency industry.”
The plan presented by FTX is not official. The parties must submit their objections by January 11, 2024. In addition, a hearing is pending to discuss this case. It will be celebrated next January 25.
FTX have submitted an Estimation Motion that dollarizes customer claims per Nov 11 2022.
— FTX 2.0 Customer Coalition (@ftxcoalition) December 27, 2023
BTC: $16,871.63
ETH: $1,258.84
SOL: $16.2471144
The rest of the assets would go to non-customer creditors including shareholders. If customers disagree, they must object until January 11. pic.twitter.com/86iPuL4qNT
The community reacts
After learning of FTX’s plan to compensate users at a lower price than the main cryptocurrencies on the market currently, the community came forward to openly criticize the failed exchange’s proposal.
Via X (formerly Twitter), various comments were noted. This was the case of the reflection of the bitcoiner Nick Neuman, who assures that the FTX proposal is nothing more than a reminder that “if they are not your keys, they are not your coins.”
“When people choose to leave their assets on an exchange, they are taking on both a security risk and an entity risk (the risk of the exchange closing, committing fraud, etc.). “Many people consider the security risk worth taking and completely ignore the risk to the entity,” she warned.
According to Neuman, the best way to protect long-term assets is through self-custody. “With the right tools to keep it safe,” he said.
X user @TrueDoodles thinks something similar, who describes the FTX plan as a scam. Although, he warns, opposing the proposal could extend the case “with an unknown outcome and more than billions in lawyers.”
“I prefer to take what they offer and multiply it in the market,” he stated.
FTX, which was once one of the most important bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchanges on the market, declared bankruptcy in November 2022. The fall generated a real earthquake in the market and led to the arrest and federal trial of the main ringleaders of the company.
