Some FTX creditor claims rise above 50¢ in over-the-counter deals

Some over-the-counter (OTC) trades of FTX creditor claims are valuing the claims at over $0.50, according to Thomas Braziel, who specializes in FTX debt claims. Buying the claim entitles the holder to whatever the FTX bankruptcy estate is able to recover, and a price of over $0.50 signals that the market currently expects about half of users’ assets to be recovered.

Braziel, a partner at 117 Partners, said that a $20m+ claim sold for around 52¢ on the dollar on Friday at auction, but that only the “largest and cleanest claims” can expect to fetch that price.

Enthusiasm around the value of FTX claims has grown since Anthropic, the AI company which FTX had purchased a large stake in, announced multiple large investments recently. Creditors hope that the sale of the Anthropic stake will help return funds to creditors, with a full recovery possible.

In an X poll from January of this year, a majority of respondents said they expected an only 25% recovery on their claims. Since then, the FTX Debtors’ estate, led by CEO John Ray III, has attempted to claw back funds, begin selling coins, and liquidate other assets from the estate.Meanwhile, the criminal trial of Sam Bankman-Fried is ongoing.

Though the court is on break, the trial is scheduled to resume this Thursday.