Judge John Dorsey Approves Sale of FTX’s 8% Stake in Anthropic, Offering Significant Financial Recovery Opportunity
The bankruptcy court has approved the sale of FTX’s stake in AI startup Anthropic, potentially generating over $1 billion for the struggling exchange.
Approval of Anthropic Sale by FTX
A bankruptcy court, presided over by Judge John Dorsey, has granted crypto exchange FTX approval to sell its 8% stake in artificial intelligence startup Anthropic. This decision, resulting from a hearing, paves the way for FTX to liquidate its investment in Anthropic, as recent reports suggest a valuation of the company between $15 and $18 billion.
Financial Results and Sales Procedures
Former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s initial investment in Anthropic was around $500 million in 2021. The sale of this stake is considered one of FTX’s most profitable investments and will increase the exchange’s cash reserve. Debtors highlighted in their sale motion filed earlier this month that the flexibility to sell “all or parts of the Anthropic shares at different times and by different means will help the debtors monetize their interest.
Implications for Creditors and Long-Term Strategy
No investor is willing to commit the funds needed to restart the exchange. No buyer has come forward for FTX either.
Despite previous announcements that creditors “will eventually be paid in full,“ the exchange has also revealed that it has abandoned restart plans after failing to find a buyer. Attorneys informed Judge Dorsey that no investor was willing to commit the necessary capital to relaunch the offshore exchange, and no buyer was found. However, the exchange still holds “valuable client data.“
Meanwhile, FTX has also been authorized to sell its shares of Grayscale’s bitcoin ETF, having already liquidated approximately $1 billion in GBTC, thus contributing to the asset recovery effort to repay creditors under the current Chapter 11 plan.
