Bahamas Attorney General L. Ryan Pinder delivered a video statement Sunday night on the investigation into crypto platform FTX, which crumbled earlier this month, taking billions of dollars with it.
As per Gizmodo, Pinder is aware that FTX shareholders believe the Bahamian government failed in its duties, and this is one thing that is quite evident.
Legal Jurisdiction
In the latest video, Pinder is on the offensive, arguing that the rule of law in the Bahamas is powerful and that similar inevitable failures of crypto enterprises have occurred in other countries.
Pinder spent much of his Sunday night emphasizing that the Bahamas is a respectable destination to conduct business with a robust legal framework.
The attorney general claimed it would be a great oversimplification to blame the Bahamas since FTX is based there.
Collapsed FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried reportedly resides in the said country, but Pinder did not provide any information regarding what might happen to him.
The Bahamas is a legal jurisdiction, Pinder said.
As he continued his 23-minute Facebook Live broadcast, he remarked on the importance of the rule of law and the application of the due process.
Over two weeks ago, FTX filed for bankruptcy in Delaware. Officials in the Bahamas have questioned FTX's decision to file for bankruptcy in the US, claiming the firm lacks the requisite legal standing to do so and that Bahamian authorities should instead handle some aspect of the reconstruction of the business.
The Bahamas is a tax haven for the ultra-wealthy and has aggressively pursued crypto firms to set up shop there.
FTX Probe
Bankman-Fried allegedly used FTX client cash to make risky investments via Alameda Research, losing billions. Bankman-Fried has confirmed the activity in interviews and tweets, but specific quantities and where the money went remain unknown.
Pinder noted in his video that Alameda Research was not regulated in the Bahamas, unlike FTX.
He congratulated the Bahamas Securities Commission for suspending FTX's business license and appointing liquidators in the $32 billion corporation.
The attorney general claimed the Commission was the first body to seize FTX's cryptocurrency.
He said guessing games and rumors had distorted the fundamental facts of the case. He stated that his agency is in the early stages of its complicated FTX probe.
See Also: FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried Apologizes to Ex-employees
Crypto Sector
Pinder described the bitcoin sector as a new frontier that will face challenges.
FTX financed Super Bowl advertising starring Larry David to reassure investors. David and other celebrities were sued for their marketing work before Thanksgiving.
Pinder stated the crypto business lacks worldwide norms. Global regulators still struggle to govern digital assets.
He repeatedly argued that FTX was operating in many other countries, suggesting that other governments should have been paying attention to things before FTX filed for bankruptcy, even if his own nation had petitioned for power over the said bankruptcy case.
Related Story: CryptoWatch: Binance's Proof of Reserves for BTC, FTX's Former CEO Apologizes, and Genesis' Debt
Written by Trisha Kae Andrada from Tech Times
