- Royal Bahamas Police is investigating the collapse of FTX to see if any criminal behavior took place
- The police will work with the Bahamas Securities Commission, which is already investigating the company
- FTX is already in trouble after claiming that the Commission told it to process withdrawals for Bahamian citizens
The Royal Bahamas Police is investigating the collapse of FTX to see if any criminal behavior took place, the force announced yesterday. In a statement sent to various news outlets, the Royal Bahamas Police said it was working with the Bahamas Securities Commission to identify any illegal activities from FTX and its executives, in the first sign that the collapse could have been more than just mismanagement.
Police “Working Closely” with Bahamas Securities Commission
It was already startlingly obvious that the Bahamas Securities Commission was going to investigate FTX, given that FTX held a license with the Commission, but the fact that the Financial Crimes Investigation Branch will be “working closely” with the Commission should be of huge concern to FTX co-founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried.
FTX filed for bankruptcy on Friday after one of the most high-profile implosions in the crypto world, with the collapse revealing that FTX only had $900 million in liquid assets against $9 billion of liabilities. There is also evidence that Bankman-Fried funded the trading activities of FTX’s trading arm, Alameda Research, with billions in user funds.
In its statement yesterday, the Royal Bahamas Police said:
In light of the collapse of FTX globally and the provisional liquidation of FTX Digital Markets Ltd., a team of financial investigators from the Financial Crimes Investigation Branch are working closely with the Bahamas Securities Commission to investigate if any criminal misconduct occurred.
Securities Commission Denied Withdrawal Order
FTX is already in trouble with the Bahamas Securities Commission after it claimed last Friday that the commission had instructed it to facilitate the withdrawal of Bahamian funds, a claim which led to whales offering up to $1 million to FTX staff to have their residencies changed to Bahamas in order to facilitate their funds coming off the platform.
The commission denied this in a statement on Saturday, saying that it “has not directed, authorized or suggested to FTX Digital Markets, Ltd. the prioritization of withdrawals for Bahamian clients.”
