Incident report
FTX
FTX looked like institutional crypto infrastructure: stadium naming rights, celebrity investors, and a public safety narrative. The failure was a custody and governance crisis hiding behind a polished exchange interface.
Key operator
Sam Bankman-Fried
Founder and former CEO
Photo: Court and media public record
Damage / claims
More than $8 billion in customer money
Affected clients
Tens of thousands of customers and firms cited in victim statements
Collapse value
$11 billion forfeiture ordered for victim compensation
Public outcome
Founder convicted and sentenced
What Happened
Sam Bankman-Fried was convicted on fraud and conspiracy charges and sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Customer deposits were available to Alameda Research through hidden privileges and balance-sheet holes.
FTX promoted itself as liquid and responsibly managed while the affiliated trading firm used customer money.
The collapse accelerated when doubts about FTX and Alameda's balance sheets triggered a withdrawal run.
Timeline
- 2019FTX launches and quickly grows into one of the largest crypto exchanges.
- Nov 2022Liquidity stress becomes public; FTX files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
- Nov 2023Bankman-Fried is convicted by a New York jury.
- Mar 2024He is sentenced to 25 years and ordered to forfeit $11 billion.