Bahamas Regulator SCB Denies Asking FTX to Mint New Tokens

The Securities Commission of The Bahamas (SCB) has refuted the claims made by FTX debtors that it had instructed the crypto exchange to mint tokens worth hundreds of millions.

In an official statement released on Jan. 3, the regulator sought to correct the material misstatements of FTX’s new CEO, John J. Ray III, in a series of court filings that received global media coverage.

SCB Allegedly Asked SBF to Mint New Tokens

Last month, FTX lawyers made several public statements alleging that Bahamian authorities reportedly ordered the exchange’s founder, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), to issue a new cryptocurrency to the tune of $300 million, which local officials would control.

The SCB statement also pointed out that the Chapter 11 Debtors had debated the value of seized digital assets held by the regulator in November.

Recall that last month, the regulator announced that it had seized more than $3.5 billion worth of digital assets from the exchange’s Bahamian arm, FTX Digital Markets, which it was holding with the intent of using them to repay customers and other creditors.

However, FTX quickly disputed the SCB’s calculations, claiming that its digital assets seized were worth just $296 million and not the $3.5 billion reported by the securities watchdog.

FTX’s Claims Were Based on “Incomplete Information” 

In the statement, the SCB argued that these claims were based on “incomplete information,” adding that the debtors had failed to do due diligence before making such accusations.

“The Chapter 11 Debtors chose not to utilize their ability to request information from the Joint Provisional Liquidators pursuant to a court order of the Supreme Court of The Bahamas that the Commission obtained in an effort to allow the Chapter 11 Debtors to obtain this information… The US Debtors’ continued lack of diligence when making public statements concerning the Commission is disappointing,” the regulator said.

The SCB further expressed concerns that its investigation is being jeopardized by the Chapter 11 Debtors’ insistence on denying the Court Supervised Joint Provisional Liquidators access to FTX’s AWS System.

The regulator urged Chapter 11 Debtors to proceed with matters bearing the best interest of FTX customers and creditors.