Newly Married Couple Lost Funds to the FTX Collapse
- The new couple were impressed by FTX’s popularity in Taiwan.
- The lovebirds were only able to withdraw a part of their funds on FTX before it finally stopped withdrawals.
- Crypto companies such as BlockFi suffered the ultimate consequences due to their exposure to FTX.
The news of the collapse of one of the biggest exchanges, FTX, sent shockwaves through the crypto industry. Although the failures of crypto platforms have been commonplace this year, very few imagined the exchange, founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, would join the list.
FTX was said to have a $30 billion valuation and millions of users at the height of its power. However, news emerged in early November that the exchange had liquidity troubles and was unable to match the withdrawal demands of its users. Surprisingly, FTX filed for bankruptcy on November 11, wiping off billions of users’ funds.
Thousands of users have confessed to suffering greatly from the exchange’s collapse, including Jaime Zulueta, whose loss came after his wedding. Speaking to Cointelegraph, Zulueta noted that he and his partner lost some of their investments in the shocking collapse.
Like many others, the newlyweds were impressed by the positive media coverage of Bankman-Fried and were convinced FTX was the right exchange to trust after reading a couple of articles about the platform. Unfortunately, the crypto investor and his partner lost their personal funds to the collapse. Speaking of how they felt with the news, Zulueta said they could “not sleep properly for a few days.”
The couple found the news of the collapse surprising due to Bankman-Fried’s close ties with regulators. However, Zulueta’s biggest pain came from finding out that Bankman-Fried and other FTX executives had mismanaged users’ funds for personal gains. Despite having an ugly experience with FTX, Zulueta remains a great believer in the crypto industry. Expressing his confidence, he said,
I still believe in crypto. The problem that happened is a human problem. Greed cannot be regulated. As long as people are influenced to do evil – in any market, such things will happen.
Fortunately, the newlyweds were able to withdraw a part of their funds kept in the exchange before it finally paused withdrawals. While Zulueta and his new bride were able to weather the FTX storm, some companies with exposure to the exchange were forced to pack up. For example, BlockFi, a lending platform, filed for bankruptcy late last month. The platform’s inevitable failure exposed frailties within the crypto space that demand urgent attention.
Lawrence has covered some exciting stories in his career as a journalist, he finds blockchain-related stories very intriguing. He believes Web3 will change the world and wants everyone to be a part of it.
