The new CEO of FTX, John Ray III, has come under fire from the Bahamas Securities Commission for his comments about the ongoing investigation into the defunct cryptocurrency exchange.
In a press release, the Bahamian regulator addressed “key statements” of John J. Ray III with which it disagrees, as well as recent claims that the Bahamas government asked former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to mint a new multimillion-dollar token and transfer control to them.
MEDIA RELEASE: SCB Addresses Misstatement in FTX Delaware Filing. pic.twitter.com/J7VCDn0K1I
— Securities Commission of The Bahamas (@SCBgov_bs) December 13, 2022
The Securities Commission of the Bahamas stated in the press release:
“Mr. Ray has referred to redacted email correspondence by and between Mr. Bankman-Fried and Bahamian officials. Those relations were designed to create a false impression of communications between Mr. Bankman-Fried and the commission. These redactions are disturbing as Mr. Ray is aware that the full email reveals Mr. Bankman-Fried’s acknowledgment that he had not briefed the securities commission.”
According to the securities regulator, they were the first regulators to impose stiff sanctions on the CEO of the failed exchange. In response to rumours over the custody of digital assets, the press release stated that officials had obtained permission from the Bahamas’ highest court to move potentially “commingled digital assets” from the FTX exchange.
The release also stated:
“The Commission holds those assets as trustee only (under Bahamian Law), and they will be ultimately distributed, to creditors and clients of FTX, wherever they may be located, in accordance with the court’s direction.”
Regulators in the Bahamas claim that Ray intentionally misrepresented discussions between Mr. Bankman-Fried and the Commission by using redacted email exchanges between Bankman-Fried and Bahamian officials.
The release added:
“The Commission also finds it disturbing that, either deliberately or through ignorance, Mr. Ray’s filings and communications continue to wrongfully confuse as one, the actions of the Government of The Bahamas, the Securities Commission of The Bahamas and the Court Appointed/Court Supervised Joint Provisional Liquidators.”
The new CEO was accused of not first discussing his concerns with the commission before making them public, and the securities regulator demanded that Ray and his representatives not obstruct the investigations.
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