Figure Technologies, along with former NYSE Executive Tom Farley and VC Proof Group, are planning to acquire what’s left of FTX, according to a report by WSJ.com. FTX was once valued at over $30 billion.
Figure, founded by top Fintech entrepreneur Mike Cagney, operates one of the more successful enterprise blockchain platforms. Farley currently runs Bullish, a small crypto exchange that is currently ranked #81 by CoinMarketCap. Bullish does not provide services in the United States and is licensed in Gibraltar – a crypto-friendly jurisdiction. Bullish aims to be an institutional-grade platform that prioritizes compliance, audit, and governance frameworks.
The report indicates that around 70 different parties kicked the tires of FTX, with the group of possible acquirers now down to three suitors. At one time, FTX was one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world – until it collapsed into bankruptcy due to massive fraud by founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, who will now be spending much of his life in prison for his crimes.
It has been reported that SEC Chair Gary Gensler indicated a reanimated FTX could be viable – as long as it adheres to regulations and disclosures.
Perhaps the most interesting component of the trio is Cagney – a shrewd innovator who founded SoFi – now a public firm – and Figure, which has completed $16 billion in blockchain native lending transactions since 2018, thus proving the commercial viability of DLT at scale. Both SoFi and Figure are Fintech unicorns. Can he help to create a third? Don’t bet against him.