Blab Tech
Binances 2022 Withdrawal from FTX Deal Leaves a $100 Billion Legacy Behind
In November 2022, Binance chief executive Changpeng Zhao announced plans to acquire the struggling FTX exchange. The deal was abandoned a day later after due‑diligence uncovered serious financial and regulatory problems. The decision, framed as a move to protect users, has since been seen as a missed chance to acquire a portfolio that would later be worth more than $100 billion.
The collapse unfolded on 6 November when Binance announced it would liquidate its holdings of FTX’s native token, FTT. The next day, FTX founder Sam Bankman‑Fried called Zhao and requested a rescue. Zhao signed a non‑binding letter of intent (LOI) to acquire FTX’s non‑U.S. operations, but the LOI was intended only to give Binance’s legal and compliance teams access to FTX’s books. Within hours of beginning the due‑diligence process, Binance’s auditors discovered a large deficit of client funds, a tangled relationship with the trading firm Alameda Research, and ongoing investigations by U.S. regulators. On 9 November, Binance withdrew its offer, citing mishandled customer funds and regulatory concerns.
FTX’s pre‑collapse investments have become highly profitable in the liquidation process. The FTX treasury included a $500 million investment in Anthropic, a safety‑focused AI research company founded by former OpenAI executives. Anthropic’s valuation has since surged; a 2026 funding round placed the company at a post‑money valuation of $965 billion, making an 8 % stake worth between $70 billion and $90 billion. FTX also held a 5 % stake in Cursor, an AI‑powered code editor that has become a standard tool for developers. The stake was sold back to Cursor’s founders for $200 000 during bankruptcy proceedings, but the company’s valuation later reached $60 billion, making the original stake worth about $3 billion.
Other holdings included indirect exposure to SpaceX, a public brokerage firm, and a large position in Solana (SOL) tokens. FTX had accumulated roughly $60 million of SOL when the token traded near $8 during the market crash. The token’s price later recovered to a peak that would value the original investment at about $21 billion.
The FTX bankruptcy court, led by insolvency specialist John J. Ray III, has recovered cash, property, and illiquid venture assets. The asset recovery has enabled the estate to offer a historic settlement, paying back 100 % of verified claims to retail creditors with interest.
Binance’s own legal challenges have continued. In 2023 the company pleaded guilty to violating U.S. anti‑money‑laundering rules and paid a $4.3 billion fine. In 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice alleged that Zhao had violated the Bank Secrecy Act and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Zhao pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four months in prison, which he completed in September 2024. He was later pardoned by President Donald Trump in October 2025.
The FTX case illustrates how a failed acquisition can expose a company to regulatory risk and missed investment opportunities. While Binance avoided the immediate fallout from FTX’s insolvency, the assets left behind have become a significant part of the broader AI and technology investment landscape.
Today, Binance continues to face regulatory scrutiny, while the FTX estate is liquidating its remaining assets. The settlement of creditor claims is expected to be completed in the coming months, and the valuation of the recovered venture holdings will likely be finalized once the companies complete their own funding rounds.
In summary, Binance’s decision to walk away from FTX in November 2022 prevented a potential legal and regulatory crisis but also left the exchange without a portfolio that, by 2026, was valued at more than $100 billion. The fallout from the collapse continues to shape the regulatory and investment landscape for cryptocurrency and AI companies.
The collapse unfolded on 6 November when Binance announced it would liquidate its holdings of FTX’s native token, FTT. The next day, FTX founder Sam Bankman‑Fried called Zhao and requested a rescue. Zhao signed a non‑binding letter of intent (LOI) to acquire FTX’s non‑U.S. operations, but the LOI was intended only to give Binance’s legal and compliance teams access to FTX’s books. Within hours of beginning the due‑diligence process, Binance’s auditors discovered a large deficit of client funds, a tangled relationship with the trading firm Alameda Research, and ongoing investigations by U.S. regulators. On 9 November, Binance withdrew its offer, citing mishandled customer funds and regulatory concerns.
FTX’s pre‑collapse investments have become highly profitable in the liquidation process. The FTX treasury included a $500 million investment in Anthropic, a safety‑focused AI research company founded by former OpenAI executives. Anthropic’s valuation has since surged; a 2026 funding round placed the company at a post‑money valuation of $965 billion, making an 8 % stake worth between $70 billion and $90 billion. FTX also held a 5 % stake in Cursor, an AI‑powered code editor that has become a standard tool for developers. The stake was sold back to Cursor’s founders for $200 000 during bankruptcy proceedings, but the company’s valuation later reached $60 billion, making the original stake worth about $3 billion.
Other holdings included indirect exposure to SpaceX, a public brokerage firm, and a large position in Solana (SOL) tokens. FTX had accumulated roughly $60 million of SOL when the token traded near $8 during the market crash. The token’s price later recovered to a peak that would value the original investment at about $21 billion.
The FTX bankruptcy court, led by insolvency specialist John J. Ray III, has recovered cash, property, and illiquid venture assets. The asset recovery has enabled the estate to offer a historic settlement, paying back 100 % of verified claims to retail creditors with interest.
Binance’s own legal challenges have continued. In 2023 the company pleaded guilty to violating U.S. anti‑money‑laundering rules and paid a $4.3 billion fine. In 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice alleged that Zhao had violated the Bank Secrecy Act and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Zhao pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four months in prison, which he completed in September 2024. He was later pardoned by President Donald Trump in October 2025.
The FTX case illustrates how a failed acquisition can expose a company to regulatory risk and missed investment opportunities. While Binance avoided the immediate fallout from FTX’s insolvency, the assets left behind have become a significant part of the broader AI and technology investment landscape.
Today, Binance continues to face regulatory scrutiny, while the FTX estate is liquidating its remaining assets. The settlement of creditor claims is expected to be completed in the coming months, and the valuation of the recovered venture holdings will likely be finalized once the companies complete their own funding rounds.
In summary, Binance’s decision to walk away from FTX in November 2022 prevented a potential legal and regulatory crisis but also left the exchange without a portfolio that, by 2026, was valued at more than $100 billion. The fallout from the collapse continues to shape the regulatory and investment landscape for cryptocurrency and AI companies.
