The blockchain-related Sui startup Mysten Labs will receive a stake in the project owned by the FTX exchange, which is undergoing bankruptcy proceedings, including warrants for utility tokens. The deal value is $96.3 million, according to CoinDesk.
In August 2022, the platform led Mysten Labs’ $200 million Series B financing round. FTX received 570,000 preferred shares and ~890,000,000 token warrants, investing $102 million.
The buyback agreement aligns with the exchange’s new CEO John Ray’s strategy to maximise payouts to creditors. In February 2023, the Delaware bankruptcy court authorized the sale of certain assets of FTX that fall under the De Minimis category. The stake in Mysten Labs was included in this list.
On 16 March, the startup filed a request to buy back its shares and token warrants.
“Before the deal date is approved, creditors are prepared to consider more favorable bids from any third parties,” — the document states.
In January 2023, the court allowed FTX to begin selling its business units to raise liquidity for creditor settlements. Earlier, the platform said that LedgerX, Embed, FTX Japan, FTX Europe and other companies within the group attracted interest 117 organisations.
In March, Alameda Research Ventures—the investment arm of FTX—executed a deal to sell a stake in Sequoia Capital to the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund for $45 million.
According to the March court presentation, the aggregate asset shortfall of the exchange to cover customer claims stood at $8.7 billion, with $1.6 billion in Bitcoin.
In April, an auction will be held for the sale of FTX’s cryptocurrency derivatives platform LedgerX.