The FTX bankruptcy estate has further diversified its staking activities, with the latest move involving a $9.5 million stake in MATIC through the Polygon staking contract, yielding a 4.6% return. The total value of the staked assets now surpasses $170 million. The development was first highlighted by journalist Wu Blockchain on X.
The address controlled by the FTX bankruptcy team has recently staked MATIC worth about US$9.5 million, with a yield of 4.6%; 24k ETH (US$37.45 million) has been staked, and a total of over US$170 million in cryptocurrency has been staked.https://t.co/OvLQ6aMg7k…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 17, 2023
Arkham Intelligence, a leading blockchain analytics firm, verified the estate’s staking actions. Unlike the previous assets that were staked through Figment, a staking validator firm catering to institutional clients, the MATIC tokens were staked directly via Polygon’s contract.
This addition comes after the estate’s previous staking activities, which included $122 million in Solana (SOL) tokens and 24,000 ETH valued at $37.45 million. Further, the estate had also staked an additional 3,200 Ethereum, worth approximately $5 million. A spokesperson from Nansen confirmed that the wallets involved in these transactions belong to Alameda Research, the sister trading firm of FTX.
FTX had substantial investments in the Solana blockchain, holding more than $1 billion in SOL tokens. The exchange also had significant holdings in other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. Last month, the FTX estate received approval for its “Digital Asset Management and Monetization Program,” which included the option of staking cryptocurrencies to generate passive yield.
Amid these financial maneuvers, Galaxy Digital, led by Mike Novogratz, has been appointed to oversee the sale of the FTX estate’s assets. These assets are estimated to be worth $3.4 billion, spread across various cryptocurrencies. A motion was filed in August by FTX’s current leadership, seeking to hedge Bitcoin and Ether as a risk mitigation strategy against price volatility.
These staking activities are unfolding amidst the backdrop of an ongoing criminal trial against Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the now-defunct FTX exchange, in a New York court. Allegations have surfaced about Bankman-Fried’s involvement in fraudulent activities, and testimonies indicate that Alameda Research enjoyed special privileges at FTX.
