FTX’s dispute over its European business ended with a settlement that allowed the bankrupt exchange to recover value while avoiding a long court fight.
FTX had sued the founders of its former European arm, Digital Assets DA AG, after buying the company in 2021. The deal was later valued at about $323 million. FTX argued that the price was too high and sought to recover much of the money.
In February 2024, FTX reached a $32.7 million settlement with founders Patrick Gruhn and Robin Matzke. The deal allowed the European business to be sold back to its former owners while helping FTX’s bankruptcy estate recover cash for creditors.
The European business changed hands again
The settlement did not mark the end of FTX Europe. After the deal, Backpack Exchange announced that it had acquired FTX EU. Backpack said the acquisition had received approval from the FTX bankruptcy court and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC). It planned to use the business to expand its regulated crypto trading services in Europe.
The ownership process was not completely smooth. FTX’s estate later disputed Backpack’s announcement and said the shares were still held by an FTX subsidiary at that point. FTX said the bankruptcy court had not approved a direct sale of FTX EU to Backpack.
The dispute showed how difficult it can be to sell assets from a large bankruptcy case. Several parties had interests in the European business, while regulators also had to approve changes in ownership.
For FTX creditors, however, the main issue was recovering money from assets that remained valuable after the exchange collapsed.
FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022. Since then, its estate has been selling investments, settling lawsuits and recovering assets as part of the bankruptcy process. The original FTX bankruptcy report covered the collapse that started this process.
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SBF’s legal case also reached a new stage
The European dispute was only one part of the fallout from FTX’s collapse. Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty in November 2023 on seven fraud and conspiracy counts. He was sentenced in March 2024 to 25 years in prison and ordered to forfeit about $11 billion. The U.S. Department of Justice said he had misappropriated billions of dollars of FTX customer funds.
The original DeFi Planet report covered his conviction. His case did not end with the sentence. In June 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected Bankman-Fried’s appeal and upheld both his conviction and 25-year sentence. The court also upheld the roughly $11 billion forfeiture order.
This means the legal record is now much clearer than it was when the original report was published. Bankman-Fried has been convicted, sentenced and unsuccessful in his main appeal.
The FTX bankruptcy itself has also moved forward. The sale and settlement of FTX Europe show how the estate has been turning former business units into cash for the wider bankruptcy process.
The European business is therefore no longer simply an asset FTX is trying to sell. Its ownership has moved through the bankruptcy settlement and into Backpack’s European expansion plans.
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