FTX Begins Repayments: $800M to 162K Accounts

FTX, the once-thriving cryptocurrency exchange that collapsed in late 2022, has begun the process of financial recovery for its creditors. In a significant development, the exchange has started making partial repayments to its creditors, with a focus on those with smaller claims.

FTX creditor Sunil recently took to Twitter to share details about the repayments. According to his tweets, FTX has so far paid out approximately $800 million to around 162,000 accounts. These repayments are being made to customers with claims under $50,000, as is common practice in bankruptcy proceedings. A total of $1.2 billion has been set aside for these payments.

The initial repayment round concentrates on paying back smaller creditors with claims under $50,000. Around $800 million has already been distributed to about 162,000 accounts, which makes up about 35% of the estimated 460,000 accounts eligible for repayment. The money was allocated with 50% going directly to the original account holders and an equal amount going to debt acquirers, who purchased the claims from the original holders. Paying off these small creditors is a crucial first step in making things right after the FTX bankruptcy, which left many investors and users in dire straits.

The repayments come after months of legal and logistical delays following FTX’s bankruptcy declaration in November 2022. Individual users and institutional investors who constitute FTX’s creditor base have long sought some form of payback following the collapse of the exchange, which led to “real and lasting harm” amounting to billions of dollars. While these repayments are certainly a positive step, they are part of a plan that, by most accounts, has a long way to go before it is fully implemented.

As the initial payment is made to creditors owed less than $50,000, Sunil also gave some important details about how and when FTX will be paying back its larger creditors. The next distribution goes to the record date of April 11, 2025, and that’s significant for a couple of reasons: Creditor claims above $50,000 will be in abundance, but the larger pieces of that puzzle—both individual and institutional