- November 4, 2023
- Posted by: [email protected]
- Category:
The claim pricing of FTX has witnessed an astounding surge, hitting a peak of 55%, a remarkable increase from as low as 6% observed in November of the previous year. This significant shift in claim pricing has been particularly driven by the remarkable valuation of Anthropic, an artificial intelligence (AI) company in which FTX has invested.
According to Claims Market data, the bid and ask prices for FTX claims currently stand at 52% and 55%, respectively. In the context of a claims market, the terms “bid” and “ask” denote the prices at which participants are willing to purchase or sell claims.
The bid represents the highest price that a buyer is willing to pay for a specific claim, reflecting the demand for the claim at that price point. Essentially, bidders are signaling the maximum amount they are willing to spend to acquire the claim. Conversely, the ask represents the lowest price at which a seller is willing to part with their claim.
In comparison to other entities, the claim prices of Celsius hover at approximately 35% to 40%, Genesis stands at around 50%, Alameda at 10% to 15%, and 3AC at a more modest 7% to 9%.
The remarkable surge in FTX’s claim pricing is intricately tied to the stratospheric valuation of Anthropic, an AI company with strong backing from key players. Amazon pledged a staggering $4 billion to support Anthropic at the end of September, following Google’s earlier injection of $300 million into the AI startup. Prior to this, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), a former FTX CEO, and his senior executives had infused $500 million into Anthropic.
The “FTX 2.0 Coalition,” a group of FTX creditors, emphasized on October 4 the potential for SBF’s investment in Anthropic to fully reimburse FTX’s customers and clients. This discussion gained traction, particularly in the wake of Amazon’s substantial $4 billion investment. The positive momentum continued on October 27, when reports confirmed that Google was committing a noteworthy $2 billion to Anthropic. While the post-valuation figures remained undisclosed, early estimates suggested a valuation in the range of $20 billion to $30 billion.
Despite the optimistic outlook stemming from the investments in Anthropic, the backdrop of legal proceedings looms large. SBF, who faces fraud charges, has been warned by U.S. prosecutors not to let the potential benefits for FTX’s customers overshadow the legal challenges he is confronting. In the early stages of the trial, prosecutors sought to exclude the Anthropic investment from the proceedings.
As reported, Bankman-Fried could potentially face a lengthy prison sentence when sentencing occurs in March. In contrast, Caroline Ellison, CEO of Alameda Research, Gary Wang, co-founder of FTX, and Nishad Singh, FTX engineering chief, are anticipated to receive minimal or no prison time due to their cooperation. All three individuals acknowledged their involvement in fraudulent activities under the direction of Bankman-Fried, which entailed the transfer of billions of dollars in FTX customer funds to Alameda, a hedge fund primarily owned by Bankman-Fried.
