OKX just sent $60M in USDT, MASK token to Alameda Research
On May 9, crypto exchange OKX sent approximately $60 million worth of digital assets to wallets connected to failed hedge fund Alameda Research, according to data from crypto analytics platform Arkham Intelligence.
Screenshot showing transfers from OKX to Alameda Research wallets. Source: Arkham Intelligence.The funds were spread out among 16 separate transactions and included approximately 337.9 million Mask Network (MASK) tokens (worth $1.3 million), as well as $57.77 million worth of Tether (USDT) stablecoin.
In the past hour, Alameda Research wallets have received $57.77M in USDT from OKX.
Link to Arkham wallet address below: pic.twitter.com/9JXhH0sQnR
— Arkham (@ArkhamIntel) May 9, 2023According to Arkham Intelligence, Alameda Research currently holds over $284 million worth of assets in its crypto wallets. Its largest holdings are USDT, BitDAO (BIT), Ether (ETH), and Stargate Finance (STG).
The funds may have been part of a recovery effort to pay back customers of Alameda’s sister company, FTX. On March 30, OKX said it planned to return approximately $157 million it held on behalf of FTX and Alameda. The crypto exchange said it had frozen the funds in November to safeguard them. According to that same announcement, FTX filed a motion on March 30 to force OKX to release the funds to pay back creditors, which OKX said it “welcomed.”
After declaring bankruptcy and coming under new management, FTX and Alameda have been aggressively trying to recover funds from firms they previously sent crypto to. On March 23, FTX reached a settlement with hedge fund Modulo Capital, allowing it to recover $460 million previously invested in the fund. On May 4, FTX filed a motion to claw back $4 billion it allegedly lent to bankrupt crypto lending firm Genesis Global.
FTX Group and roughly 130 companies under its umbrella, including Alameda Research, filed for bankruptcy in November after the crypto exchange suffered a liquidity crisis. Alameda Research's former CEO, Caroline Ellison, has been charged with fraud for allegedly colluding with former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to misappropriate FTX customer funds. She pleaded guilty to the charges on Dec. 22. However, Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty and has sought to dismiss some of the charges against him.