Former wealthy cryptocurrency donor FTX had donated several million dollars to the prestigious Stanford University. Asked by the bankrupt stock exchange’s lawyers, Stanford announces that it will reimburse.
Lawyers for FTX debtors are determined to add money to the bankrupt company’s coffers. And to do so, they took action against third parties, including Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents.
They also contacted the California University of Stanford, where conciliation prevailed. The university would have received donations worth several million dollars. According to information presented in court, FTX allocated $5.5 million between November 2021 and May 2022.
In addition to giving FTX clients funds for the “cause” at the University, Bankman and Fried also received a 30,000-square-foot home in the Bahamas valued at $16.4 million and a $10 million cash gift from their son.
Donations Linked to the Covid Pandemic
Months ago, it was reported that Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, the parents of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, sent some crypto exchange funds to Stanford University, where they serve as law professors.
“Stanford has received donations from the FTX Foundation and companies related to FTX, mainly for pandemic prevention and research,” confirms a spokesperson for the renowned university.
The university therefore owes its generous donations to its ties to the parents of the former star crypto entrepreneur. In any case, these are the accusations of the plaintiffs’ lawyers, who demanded reimbursement of the donations.
“We have spoken with the lawyers of the FTX debtors to recover these donations and we will return the funds in full,” announced the Stanford representative, without specifying the exact amount of the initial donation.
Despite the university’s intentions, in court filings they alleged that the donations to the institute did not benefit the FTX Group, and instead represented personal treatment by Bankman, who sought to curry favor and enrich his employer by expenses of the FTX Group.
This may not be the case with other donations SBF made, especially those made to political groups. Donations to political parties were labeled “fraudulent transfers” in a lawsuit and would therefore be returned.
Like Stanford University, the Metropolitan Museum of Art also received millions of dollars in donations from the crypto exchange. During the end of the second quarter of 2023, the museum finally decided to return $550,000 thousand dollars in donations as a result of “good faith and independent negotiations” on behalf of both parties involved.
SBF Accused of Illegal Transfers to His Parents
Lawyers will likely have a more difficult time obtaining restitution of the funds paid by FTX to Bankman and Fried. According to new elements provided in the file, SBF was very generous with his parents, after his father considered his annual salary of $200,000 insufficient.
“Within two weeks, Bankman-Fried gave Bankman and Fried $10 million in funds from Alameda Ltd. Over the next three months, Bankman-Fried arranged for the couple to receive a $16.4 million property in the Bahamas, paid with funds ultimately obtained from FTX Trading.”
According to the lawyers, the parents of the former CEO thus benefited from illegal transfers of funds belonging to the bankrupt company. His lawyers denounce “completely false” accusations. They won’t pay as easily as Stanford.
Since FTX’s collapse in November 2022 and its protection from filing for bankruptcy, the company’s debtors represented by some advisors have been trying to recover their funds. Most of these customer deposits were given as donations and gifts to various entities, including political parties.
By Audy Castaneda
