Sam Bankman-Fried Took $300 Million of FTX’s 2021 Funding Round

Joshua Ramos
FTX
Source – Watcher.Guru

The Wall Street Journal reported that former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried personally took $300 Million of FTX’s 2021 funding round. A round that accumulated the platform a total of $420 million.

The report notes that the funding came from a plethora of investors in October 2021. Furthermore, the platform sold investors on claims that the funds would assist FTX in expanding its business.

Three-Quarters of FTX’s 2021 Funding went to SBF

The Wall Street Journal reported that disgraced crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried pocketed an astronomical $300 Million in 2021. According to FTX financial records that were obtained by the publication.

“Mr. Bankman-Fried told investors at the time it was a partial reimbursement of money he’d spent to buy out rival Binance’s stake in FTX a few months earlier,” the report stated. Additionally adding evidence to the massive financial stream that SBF controlled. Preceding the eventual bankruptcy of FTX and Alameda Research.

Source: Forbes

Three months prior to the $420 million funding round, Bankman-Fried bought out around 15% of Binance’s stake in the company. They were the first outside investor to FTX, with SBF paying roughly $2.1 billion to Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao. Although current CEO John Ray questions the FTX financials, leading The Wall Street Journal to question where Bankman-Fried came up with the money.

The report concluded that the eventual fate of the $300 million is undeterminable. FTX audited 2021 statements only noting, “the money was retained by the company for ‘operational expediency’ on behalf of a ‘related party.'”

FTX continued funding in January of 2022 according to The Wall Street Journal. Raising an additional $400 million.