The CEO of the defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX, John J. Ray III, has come under fire from the Bahamas Securities Commission for his remarks regarding FTX's investigation by the SEC.
The Bahamian regulator addressed recent claims that the Bahamas government pressured former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to create a new multi-million coin and transfer ownership to them in a press release without specifically naming the CEO.
The study asserts that Bahamas government representatives helped Bankman-Fried regain access to the crucial computer systems used by the FTX. Attorneys for the United States assert that officials from the Bahamas were "responsible for directing unauthorised access" to FTX networks to seize digital assets.
According to the securities watchdog, the defunct exchange's CEO was the first to face serious consequences. The notice clarified that the authorities had obtained the transfer of the FTX exchange's potentially "commingled digital assets" by judgments from the supreme court of the Bahamas in response to rumours regarding the custody of digital assets.
According to Bahamian law, the Commission only acts as trustee for those assets, which will ultimately be awarded to FTX's clients and creditors, wherever they may be, by the court's instructions.
The Bahamian government criticised Ray for using "redacted email correspondence" between Bankman-Fried and government representatives. According to the press statement, Ray was aware of the entire situation and the redactions were added to present a false impression of the communications.
The CEO was accused of speaking out in public before raising his concerns with the commission, and the securities regulator ordered Ray and his attorneys not to "obstruct the investigation."
Former FTX CEO Bankman-Fried was detained by Bahamian police in the late hours of December 12 after the American government demanded his arrest. The following day, Bankman Fried was charged with fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission of the United States.