Frequently asked questions
General FAQs
A Liquidation is the appointment of an insolvency practitioner, in the form of either a group of Joint Official Liquidators (“JOLs”) or a single Liquidator, following the direction of the Court to wind up the Company. The JOLs assume control of the Company to identify and recover the assets of the company, adjudicate claims and make distributions to creditors and claimants.
The JOLs are officers of the Court and are empowered, as agents of the company, to collect, take possession, retain, manage and realise the companies property.
When the JOLs have sufficient funds in hand for the purpose they shall, subject to the retention of such sums as may be necessary for the expenses of the winding up, declare and distribute dividends among the creditors.
In an Official Liquidation in The Bahamas there are three main types of creditors:
Secured creditors;
Preferential creditors; and
Unsecured creditors.
Under Bahamian law, secured creditors are creditors with claims that are secured by collateral or assets of FTX Digital. Secured creditors have a right to enforce their security without the leave of the court and without reference to the liquidator. Although a secured creditor can also request that a liquidator sells their assets on behalf of the secured creditor.
Under Bahamian law, preferential creditors primarily consist of company liabilities regarding rates, taxes, assessments or impositions made under the provisions of any Act, alongside claims by landlords, workmen, labourers, employees for arrears of wages and accrued holiday pay. Preferential creditors rank ahead of all other creditors when realisations are achieved from assets where there is no fixed charge registered.
Under Bahamian law, unsecured creditors are all other unsecured and non-preferential creditors (with the exception of shareholders/members). They rank below preferential and secured creditors.
Shareholders / members will be the last class to receive a distribution and they will only receive a distribution after everyone else has been paid in full.
We are aware that some FTX customers have been targeted with scams. Please do verify that emails are from legitimate sources before responding to emails and if in doubt, please contact gbl_fdm_creditors@pwc.com to confirm whether a request is legitimate. The JOLs will only contact creditors from the email addresses listed on the case website.
We can confirm that the JOLs have sent emails to potential customers of FTX Digital from the following email addresses: FTXDigital@restructuring.pwc.co.uk, claims@ftx.pwc.com and uk_salesforce_autoforward_prod@pwc.com.
Emails from these addresses are legitimate communications from the JOLs and we intend to use these addresses going forward. Some of these emails are available to view and download in the ‘press releases and document library’ section on the PwC FTX case website.
To note, these mailboxes are not monitored, and you should continue to contact us, if needed, via the other email addresses detailed on the case website. These communications are not junk emails, and if you believe you should have received communication from this address, please check the junk mail folder of your email.
You can view the official email addresses that will be used to contact you here.
Updates on the FTX Digital liquidation will also be shared through the official FTX Digital X (FTX_DMOfficial) and Reddit accounts (u/FTXLiquidationOff).
FTX Digital is an entity in the FTX group incorporated in the Bahamas. The FTX group was headquartered in and operated out of the Bahamas prior to its collapse. FTX Digital was licensed by the Securities Commission of the Bahamas (“SCB”) as a Digital Assets Business and was the principal licensed entity for the majority of products offered by the International (non-US) FTX.com platform. FTX Digital conducted customer onboarding, Know-Your-Customer checks, exchange operations, settlements and held customer fiat for the “FTX.com” or “FTX International” trading platform.
FTX Digital was placed into Provisional Liquidation following the lodgement of a Winding Up Petition by the SCB on 10 November 2022, just prior to the wider bankruptcy of the FTX Group in the US on 11 November 2022. A Winding Up Order was granted against FTX Digital by The Supreme Court of The Bahamas (the “Court”) on 10 November 2023 and the Joint Provisional Liquidators were appointed as Joint Official Liquidators (“JOLs”) at the same hearing. The duties of the JOLs are to wind up the assets of the business and return funds to customers and non-customer creditors.
The FTX group operated globally trading with more than one hundred entities. The FTX Digital liquidation is the Court-mandated process for the orderly liquidation of the FTX Digital operation and legal entity business in the Bahamas.
Due to the poor internal record keeping and governance of the FTX group, there is not a clear perimeter between the assets and liabilities of FTX Digital, which is subject to an Official Liquidation process in the Bahamas (also known as the Bahamas Process), and FTX Trading Ltd, which is subject to a US Chapter 11 bankruptcy process (“the US Process”).
Following extensive review and analysis, the Liquidators of FTX Digital and FTX Trading Ltd and its affiliates as debtors in possession in the US Process (“US Chapter 11 Debtors”) have concluded that the assets and liabilities of the estates are so irreversibly intermingled that tracing is impossible.
Consequently, the Liquidators of FTX Digital and the US Chapter 11 Debtors have agreed to a Global Settlement Agreement, which among other things, contemplates pooling of assets from both estates so as to allow FTX.com customers to receive the same recoveries. The Settlement also allows the estates to coordinate asset realisations and distributions – allowing customers to lodge a claim in either the Bahamas Process or the US Process. Customers and non-customer creditors entitled to a distribution will receive substantially the same return at substantially the same time, regardless of the process they elect to make a claim in.
All customers were given the opportunity to elect into either the Bahamas Process or the US Process before the Election Deadline of 16 August 2024. The JOLs have written to all customers who successfully opted into the Bahamas Process via the email address used to register an account on the FTX Digital Claim Portal. Customers can also check they have successfully elected into the Bahamas Process via the FTX Digital Claim Portal (https://digitalmarketsclaim.pwc.com/) as this will be indicated next to your claim number on your claim dashboard.
If you have any queries, please contact our customer support team at gbl_fdm_customers@pwc.com.
The value of scheduled claims is generally calculated on the same conversion rates in both the Bahamas Process and the US Process. The claim values set out in the FTX Digital Claim Portal have been calculated in accordance with Court orders granted respectively in the Supreme Court of the Bahamas and the US Bankruptcy Court.
Claims were valued based on FTX.com platform records of the closing balances of fiat currency, any cryptocurrency tokens in the account and open derivative positions as at 11 November 2022 at 10:00am ET/3:00pm UTC. Where required, manual adjustments were made, based on available information, to the closing balance for any deposits or withdrawals where the platform records are known to not reflect actual deposits received or processed withdrawals.
Adjusted closing balances were used to convert each balance into a USD equivalent value using conversion rates based on the Digital Assets Conversion Table set out in the Estimation Order granted by the Supreme Court of the Bahamas on 12 June 2024. Please refer to the Order granted for more information.
Pursuant to the Order 8 rule 2(2) of the Chapter 308 Companies Liquidation Rules 2012 of the Statue Law of the Bahamas, the First Creditor’s Meeting was held in order to conduct a vote on the appointment of a liquidation committee. The First Creditor’s Meeting was held on 15 March 2024 at 10:30am EDT at Baha Mar Convention Center, 1 Baha Mar Blvd, Nassau, The Bahamas.
Attendance at the First Creditors’ Meeting was not mandatory and does not impact the ability of a customer or non-customer creditor to submit a claim in due course and to establish their claim. Note, that submitting a “First Creditors’ Meeting Voting and Proof of Debt Form” does not automatically qualify you for a distribution.
Creditors who were unable to attend could still register to watch the virtual broadcast or could appoint a chairperson or an individual as their proxy to attend and vote in the First Creditors’ Meeting in person on their behalf.
Creditors could appoint the chair, or another individual as their proxy by filling in and submitting the First Creditor Meeting Voting and Proof of Debt form, which was to be submitted before 10 March 2024 at 5.00pm EDT. The JOLs took the opportunity to provide all creditors with an update on the liquidation at the meeting.
We are aware that a number of customers have sold or transferred their claim to third parties. If you wish to transfer your claim please contact the JOLs’ liquidation team at gbl_fdm_creditors@pwc.com for instructions of how to do so.
If you have not yet been invited to start KYC or Claim Adjudication, please direct your queries to our customer support team at gbl_fdm_customers@pwc.com.
If you have any queries about your Claim Adjudication or Identity Verification, please message us via the secure messaging function in the FTX Digital Claim Portal (https://digitalmarketsclaim.pwc.com/).
You can access the secure messaging function in the FTX Digital Claim Portal by selecting the “View Communications” button on the top right hand side of your dashboard. Please select the “Identity Verification” or “Claim Adjudication” tab according to the nature of your enquiry to direct your message to the correct team.
Please refer to the User Guide for further guidance.
Portal FAQs
Yes, you are able to access the FTX Digital Claim Portal on mobile devices; however, for the best user experience, we recommend using desktop or tablet devices.
The FTX Digital Claim Portal is designed to be compatible with all major web browsers, however for the best experience we suggest using Google Chrome on desktop or tablet devices.
You may have unsubscribed from our mailing lists. If you have unsubscribed from our emails you will not receive a “one-time PIN”. You can update this by selecting “Unsubscribe Preferences” at the end of any email sent from claims@ftx.pwc.com.
To ensure KYC is a smooth and efficient KYC process for customers, we are rolling out KYC to customers in batches. Customers have now started to receive invitations, however not all customers will receive an invitation at the same time so please do not be concerned if you are yet to receive this.
If you have previously provided KYC information in the US Process, to the extent possible and permitted by law, the Joint Official Liquidators (“JOLs”) will use this information to minimise the need for you to repeat steps you may have already performed. By confirming your election to have your claims dealt with in the Bahamas Process, you were required to acknowledge and agree to make any KYC information you have submitted to the US Debtors accessible to FTX Digital, its agents and representatives including the JOLs, and to authorise the US Debtors to make such KYC information available to FTX Digital, its agents and representatives including the JOLs.
You will find further information on the KYC process in Section 2.2 and 3.3 of the FTX DM Election Process Overview or the User Guide.
Work is still ongoing to realise the maximum possible value for all creditors and therefore a definitive first distribution date cannot be confirmed at this stage. The FTX Digital Markets Joint Official Liquidators (“JOLs”) will write to creditors when there is an update on timing and method of distribution to creditors.
You will find further information on the distribution process in the FTX DM Election Process Overview on the JOLs case website.
Payments
The distribution to Convenience Class Customers/Creditors (Customers/Creditors with an adjudicated claim value of less than US$50,000 or who opted into the Convenience Class by reducing their adjudicated value to US$50,000) will be paid in Q1 2025.
Convenience Class Customers/Creditors will receive a single distribution which is the full amount of their adjudicated claim value, plus any applicable post-petition interest, less any applicable transfer fees.
For Customers/Creditors with Eligible Claims as at 3 January 2025, the distribution will be made subject to a creditors satisfaction of the Pre-Distribution Requirements. Please note, the distribution will not be before February 2025, do not expect to receive your distribution as soon as you input your payment details.
Any Customer/Creditor whose claim does not meet the requirements at the time of the first distribution will not be excluded from the distribution process. Customers/Creditors whose claim is not eligible (refer to the question “What are the requirements to be deemed an ‘Eligible Claim’?” below) as at 3 January 2025, or who fail to meet their Pre-Distribution Requirements before the payment schedule is finalised, will have an opportunity to receive a catch-up distribution at a later date if they subsequently meet those requirements.
The timing of distributions for Non-Convenience Class Customers/Creditors and non-customer creditors (“Other Creditors”) will be announced in due course.
Apart from timing, the distribution method for Other Creditors is likely to be substantially the same as for Convenience Class Customers/Creditors and therefore the Payment Details section of the portal will start to open for some Other Creditors to select their payment method.
The Convenience Class Customers/Creditors first and final distribution amount (“Distribution Amount”) will be calculated as:
- 100% of Customers/Creditors adjudicated claim value; plus
- an amount representing Post Petition Interest of 9.0% per annum on their adjudicated claim value from the reference date of 11 November 2022 through to the Initial Distribution Date (expected to be c.20% for Convenience Class Customers/Creditors);
To be considered an Eligible Claim, your claim must have been adjudicated by the JOLs and you must have commenced (but not necessarily completed) the Know-Your-Customer (“KYC”) process.
Eligible Claims must also have completed the following steps at least one month prior to the distribution date:
- Complete KYC without any verification issues (i.e. KYC completion must be confirmed in the FTX Digital Claim Portal);
- Submit a valid US Tax Form in time for it to be verified; and
- Submit payment option selection and have the account set-up confirmed and validated.
Please refer to the “FTX Digital Payment Selection Guidance - Institutions” or “FTX Digital Payment Selection Guidance - Individuals” documents available on the FTX Digital Claim Portal for information on the payment options available to you.
Please contact us at gbl_fdm_payment_instructions@pwc.com if you have any additional questions.
Please only contact BitGo if you encounter technical issues whilst creating a BitGo account. All other queries should be directed to gbl_fdm_payment_instructions@pwc.com. To contact BitGo please use ftxcreditors@bitgo.com.
Claim Adjudication
Please attach any evidence that corroborates your claim. You can upload additional documents by selecting “View Documents” on your dashboard.
We may request further information or documentation via the secure messaging function on the FTX Digital Claim Portal (https://digitalmarketsclaim.pwc.com/). If so, you will receive an email inviting you to check the portal. If you are required to submit additional information, we will describe the documents you are required to submit and an upload function will be created in the secure messaging function.
All customers who have submitted a claim in the Bahamas Process will be listed as "In review" until they are issued their adjudication notice. You will find more information from our email entitled ‘Confirmation of Election into the Bahamas Process’ sent out on 27 September 2024. The expected next steps are summarised below:
- The JOLs are currently undertaking an assessment of submitted claims. There may be circumstances in which the JOLs will require further information or supporting evidence from you to assess your claim – if this is required you will be contacted.
- The JOLs will issue creditors a Notice stating the outcome of the adjudication of their claim. Adjudication results will be communicated via a formal notice through the FTX Digital Claims Portal. Creditors, whose claims have been rejected, either in part or full, may appeal this decision to the Supreme Court of the Bahamas within the applicable statutory time frame.
- The adjudicated amount will form the basis for calculating distributions in the Bahamas Process.
The amount on the adjudication notice is based on the outstanding balance accrued as of 11 November 2022. The balance represents the entitlement the customers have for the distribution of their claims, before taking into account post petition interest. In addition to the adjudicated balance, customers are entitled to an ex-gratia payment representing post-petition interest of applicable rate of the outstanding balance accruing on a simple interest basis (i.e. non compounding) from 11 November 2022, to the extent that funds are available in accordance with the provisions of the Amended Global Settlement Agreement as sanctioned by the Supreme Court of The Bahamas pursuant to the order dated 16 August 2024. Customers with admitted claim value over US$50,000 may further be entitled to a share in recoveries from the Supplemental Remission Fund.
Please note that the post-petition interest and/ or supplemental remission fund estimates will not be shown on the adjudication notice but the amount will be considered as part of the distribution.
KYC
To ensure KYC is a smooth and efficient process for customers, we are rolling out KYC to customers in batches. Customers have now started to receive invitations, however not all customers will receive an invitation at the same time so please do not be concerned if you are yet to receive this. You will be notified by email once you have been invited to start the Identity Verification process.
You can confirm whether you have been invited to complete Identity Verification by logging into your FTX Digital Claim Portal account and checking the Process panel on your claim dashboard. If you are awaiting an invitation to start Identity Verification your status will be shown as “Identity Verification Not Available”. This status will change to “Identity Verification Available” once you have been invited to start Identity Verification. Please complete submission of the KYC questionnaire and digital Identity Verification within 30 days of receiving the invitation.
Individual creditors should expect to spend around 10-15 minutes completing both the KYC questionnaire and Sumsub digital Identity Verification. Verification for institutional creditors will take longer.
Additional information may be requested from individuals. Additional information will be requested from institutions, particularly in relation to the organisation structure and its associated parties.
Once we have completed our reviews a notification will be sent via email and your Identity Verification status in the claim portal will be updated.
The automated identity matching process is performed using a third-party technology provider, Sumsub, and will involve capturing your photo identification document (e.g. a passport), completing a liveness checking process, and capturing your proof of address. Certain additional information may be required depending on your location.
If your ID document has expired, we are unable to accept it for verification purposes. Please ensure that you have a valid and unexpired form of identification for the KYC process.
Once you have submitted your documents, Sumsub provides an initial indication as to whether your identity documents have been accepted. Our team will review your case including any further submitted documentation as soon as possible. You will receive a notification via email and the claim portal informing you of the status of your identity verification.
If additional information is required, we may also contact you via the secure messaging function of the claim portal. You will be granted access to the secure messaging function after you have been invited to start Identity Verification.
This will vary depending on factors such as the completeness and accuracy of the information you provide and our processing volumes. To ensure your verification is completed as quickly as possible, please respond to any requests you receive in the secure messaging function promptly. You will be granted access to the secure messaging function once you have been invited to start Identity Verification.
Individuals will be asked to submit Identity documents as part of the Sumsub verification process.
Institutions are required to upload a document that serves as evidence of their entity’s incorporation or establishment on the final page of the KYC Questionnaire.
We may request further information or documentation via the secure messaging function. If we request additional information, we will describe the documents you are required to submit and an upload function will be created in the secure messaging function. You will be granted access to the secure messaging function once you have been invited to start Identity Verification.
Should you have further supporting documents you wish to provide, please contact us via the secure messaging function in the FTX Digital Claim Portal describing the type of document and we will enable a document upload functionality within the portal for you.
Once your KYC has been approved, you will be notified by email to check the FTX Digital Claim Portal, and your status will be updated to “Identity Verification Successful”.
Yes, you may submit documents in languages other than English; however, we may request translated documents if necessary.
Please go back to the first page of the questionnaire to change your entity type.
Please note that changing entity type will reset subsequent sections and you will need to complete them again to proceed.
All identified associated persons in positions of ownership or control of the organisation will need to complete their digital identity verification on Sumsub.
Please contact us through the secure messaging function of the FTX Digital Claim Portal and we will then guide you through the required next steps. The secure messaging function can be accessed by clicking on the “View Communications” button on your dashboard.
Employee FAQs
What happened to the employees as part of the Liquidation?
Following the appointment of Brian Simms KC, of Lennox Paton, Bahamas, Kevin Cambridge, of PwC Bahamas and Peter Greaves, of PwC Hong Kong, as Joint Official Liquidators (“JOLs”) on 10 November 2023 to carry out the winding up of the Company as directed by the Court.
Any remaining employee contracts that had not already been terminated, were forthwith terminated upon granting of this order. The JOLs have written to any affected employees.
Media FAQs
Who can I contact with media related queries?
Please direct all media enquiries to Mike Davies, Global Corporate Affairs and Communications, mike.davies@pwc.com
