On Thursday, FTX Japan released a statement confirming its plan to refund user funds in February 2023. Unfortunately, the case is different for FTX users in America.
Japanese FTX Users Closer To Retrieving Their Assets
Per reports, users that want to withdraw their assets must open accounts on another crypto exchange, Liquid Japan. FTX Japan initially bought the crypto exchange in February.
Withdrawals will commence by the middle of February. However, the statement added that there could be delays. This delay will happen if the progress of the platform’s external security audit is slow.
Notably, customers will first open accounts on Liquid Japan by mid-January. Afterward, there will be balance checks followed by withdrawals in mid-February.
This is good news for FTX users in Japan who have been hoping for compensation since the suspension of withdrawals. FTX Japan users are one of the first with hopes of getting their funds back.
Previous reports reveal that the Japanese subsidiary has over one million users. Their total assets on the platform are worth over $8 billion.
Meanwhile, FTX Japan has informed its American lawyers to remove Japanese users’ funds from FTX Japan’s estate. The subsidiary cited the issue of property interests according to Japanese law.
As a result, FTX’s bankruptcy proceedings will not affect all Japanese assets. FTX Japan also tendered an apology saying:
“We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused by the protracted suspension of services for the withdrawal of both traditional cash and cryptocurrency assets.”
Japanese Regulators Ordered FTX Japan To Suspend Operations
Last month, Japanese regulators ordered FTX’s Japanese subsidiary to halt its services. This was after the FTX crisis began, and users started withdrawing their funds in large numbers.
As a result, many FTX Japanese clients couldn’t withdraw their funds. Three days after the order from Japanese regulators, FTX Global applied for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Meanwhile, the Bahamian local police authorities arrested Sam Bankman-Fried, the exchange’s founder, on December 12th. According to reports, the Bahamian securities watchdog has FTX assets worth over $3.5 billion in its custody.
The authorities hold the assets until they are returned to the original owners. The now-defunct firm FTX owes its top 50 creditors more than $3 billion.
Furthermore, the crypto firm owes its largest unsecured creditor over $226 million and its second-largest creditor $203 million. Recently, there have been several strange asset transfers from crypto wallets belonging to Alameda Research, FTX’s sister company.
The suspect used several crypto mixers to conceal their tracks and launder the assets.
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