FTX has recovered $7.3B in assets, will consider rebooting exchange

cointelegraph.com:

Cryptocurrency exchange FTX may be considering restarting in the future, according to the legal team behind the debtors.

In an April 12 hearing in United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, lawyers with Sullivan & Cromwell representing FTX said the crypto firm had recovered roughly $7.3 billion in liquid assets. A March filing from the debtors reported the four FTX company silos had roughly $4.8 billion in scheduled assets as of November 2022, with an investigation into the assets ongoing.

According to the legal team, FTX will also consider restarting its crypto exchange operations sometime in the second quarter of 2024 — suggesting a reboot as early as April. FTX CEO John Ray was reportedly mulling reviving the bankrupt exchange in a January interview.

This is their "aspirational" yet "sensible" calendar for the debtors' plan pic.twitter.com/swqyRvTp7Q

The price of the FTX Token (FTT) surged from $1.32 to $2.80 at roughly the same time lawyers announced the potential reboot of the exchange — an increase of more than 112%. The token price had largely stayed between $1 and $2 since the firm’s bankruptcy filing.

At the same hearing, the bankruptcy judge denied a motion which would have allowed the court to prioritize reimbursing former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s legal fees. He left the door open for SBF to present evidence to the court in the future regarding the motion.

“Frankly, I have zero evidence to establish cause here,” said Judge John Dorsey. “Mr. Bankman-Fried did not put out any evidence whatsoever as to the balancing of the equities here, what harm is going to occur to him. I don’t know what other insurance policies he has access to, I don’t know what other assets he has access to privately that