FTX CEO Considering Reboot of Disgraced Crypto Exchange, According to a New Court Filing

Newly filed court documents suggest FTX CEO John J. Ray III is considering restarting the bankrupt exchange’s operations.

In April, Ray appeared to take part in multiple activities centered on an FTX reboot, according to a monthly compensation report filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

Those activities include descriptions like “Review 2.0 next steps summary from PWP (purchase with purchase),” “Review next steps and comment on FTX restart,” “Review and finalize 2.0 reboot of exchange material for distribution,” and “Review and comment on 2.0 bidder list,” among others.

The report also indicates Ray spent an hour and a half reviewing a work plan “for exchange fortification” from cyber security firm Sygnia.

All in all, the CEO reported working 223.2 hours in April and billed $290,160 for his efforts.

FTX first shut down in November after the exchange’s native asset collapsed and it was forced to halt customer withdrawals.

Ray, who also oversaw the liquidation of the infamous American energy company Enron, took over for disgraced former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried after the exchange declared bankruptcy.

In his initial filing on the company’s affairs, Ray said he has never seen a corporate enterprise as mismanaged as FTX.

“Never in my career have I seen such a complete failure of corporate controls and such a complete absence of trustworthy financial information as occurred here.”

In January, the Wall Street Journal reported that Ray had set up a task force to find out if restarting the exchange could be a better alternative to selling its assets.

Bankman-Fried faces a slew of charges for allegedly defrauding customers and mishandling billions of dollars worth of their funds, as well as making illegal political donations. If convicted, he could face more than 100 years in prison.

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