FTX Japan customers have begun withdrawing all of their funds while the rest of FTX customers around the world are waiting for a resolution to the FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) legal case.
In November 2022, FTX and its subsidiaries experienced a delay in fund withdrawals when Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao revealed that the exchange would liquidate its significant holdings of FTX Token. This announcement had a ripple effect, leading to the halting of withdrawals by Liquid Group, a Japanese crypto trading platform that FTX had acquired in February of that same year. The suspension of withdrawals affected users’ ability to access their funds, causing frustration and concern among FTX customers.
After halting withdrawals on November 15, 2022, due to the announcement that Binance would liquidate its FTX Token holdings, FTX and its subsidiaries had to slow down fund withdrawals. However, on February 21, 2023, FTX Japan resumed withdrawals by transferring funds from the defunct exchange to a Liquid Japan account. This news delighted some investors who were able to successfully withdraw all their funds, including popular Japanese crypto trader Hibiki Trader.
One day after the resumption of fund withdrawals, FTX Japan announced that users had withdrawn around JPY 6.6 billion (USD 50 million).
Despite some investors claiming to have received their funds, many are still awaiting reimbursement after the collapse of FTX. The reimbursement process is expected to face delays due to the significant number of impacted users. Although some users have withdrawn all of their funds, many FTX investors worldwide are still hopeful for a successful resolution to the situation.
The FTX collapse was caused by a chain of events that began with Binance’s announcement to liquidate its holdings of FTX Token, prompting FTX and its subsidiaries to slow fund withdrawals. Liquid Group, which is owned by FTX, also halted withdrawals after the domino effect.
