Nassau, The Bahamas, Wednesday 23 November 2022 - The Securities Commission of The Bahamas ("the Commission") issues the following statement with respect to certain remarks made by FTX Trading Ltd. and certain of its affiliates, in connection with their motion to transfer the venue (the "Transfer Motion") of the Chapter 15 proceedings of FTX Digital Markets Ltd. ("FDM") that were commenced to assist the provisional liquidators appointed by the Supreme Court of The Bahamas in the discharge of their duties with respect to FDM.

FDM was incorporated in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas on 22 July 2021; it was duly registered as a digital asset business under The Bahamas' Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Act, 2020 (the "DARE Act").

Pursuant to Bahamas law, on 10 November 2022, the Commission determined that the customers and creditors of FDM were in need of the protection of the DARE Act, and suspended FDM's license to conduct business and subsequently filed a petition before the Bahamian Supreme Court to place FDM into provisional liquidation. This action – the first commenced globally against an FTX entity – placed FDM under the control of a court-appointed fiduciary and removed prior management from exercising any authority over FDM.

Given the nature of digital assets, and the risks associated with hacking and compromise, the Commission determined that placing FDM into liquidation was not sufficient to protect the customers and creditors of FDM. Accordingly, on 12 November 2022, the Commission sought an additional Order from the Supreme Court of The Bahamas for authority under the DARE Act to transfer all digital assets of FTX into digital wallets under the exclusive control of the Commission for the benefit of clients and creditors of FDM.

It is unfortunate that in Chapter 11 filings, the new CEO of FTX Trading Ltd. misrepresented this timely action through the intemperate and inaccurate allegations lodged in the Transfer Motion. It is also concerning that the Chapter 11 debtors chose to rely on the statements of individuals they have (in other filings) characterized as unreliable sources of information and potentially "seriously compromised."

Further, the statements made by the purported officers of FTX Trading Ltd. and the other purported Chapter 11 debtors – that they have suffered significant thefts, that their systems were compromised, and that they continue to face new hacking attempts – reinforces the wisdom of the Commission's prompt action to secure these digital assets.

The Commission will continue to evaluate the situation, continue to act in accordance with directions issued by the Supreme Court of The Bahamas, collaborate with other supervisory authorities and take such further actions as needed to preserve the assets of FDM and to safeguard the interests of customers and creditors of FDM.

In addition, the Commission will continue to investigate the facts and circumstances regarding FTX's liquidity crisis and any potential violations of Bahamian law and hold any responsible companies and individuals accountable, in cooperation with other regulatory agencies and law enforcement both in The Bahamas and in other affected countries in connection with their own investigations. The Commission also looks forward to continuing to cooperate with the authorities in other jurisdictions to ensure the cooperative and vigorous resolution of all necessary proceedings to effectuate those ends.

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Editor's Information:

1. The Securities Commission of The Bahamas (the Commission) is a statutory body established in 1995 pursuant to the Securities Board Act, 1995. That Act has since been repealed and replaced by new legislation.

2. The Commission's mandate is defined in the Securities Industry Act, 2011 (SIA, 2011).

3. The Commission is responsible for the administration of the SIA, 2011 and the Investment Funds Act, 2019 (IFA), which provides for the supervision and regulation of the activities of the investment funds, securities and capital markets.

4. The Commission is responsible for the administration of the Financial and Corporate Service Providers Act, 2020.

5. The Commission is responsible for the administration of the Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Act, 2020.

6. The Commission is responsible for the administration of the Carbon Credit Trading Act, 2022.

7. The functions of the Commission are to:

  • advise the Minister on all matters relating to the capital markets and its participants;
  • maintain surveillance over the capital markets and ensure orderly, fair and equitable dealings in securities;
  • foster timely, accurate, fair and efficient disclosure of information to the investing public and the capital markets;
  • protect the integrity of the capital markets against any abuses arising from financial crime, market misconduct and other unfair and improper practices;
  • promote an understanding by the public of the capital markets and its participants and the benefits, risks, and liabilities associated with investing;
  • create and promote conditions that facilitate the orderly development of the capital markets; and
  • perform any other function conferred or imposed on it by securities laws or Parliament (SIA, 2011, s.12).

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