Trouble in the Bahamas following FTX collapse: Report

Following the collapse of crypto trade FTX, which was headquartered within the island nation of Bahamas, Bahamians are reportedly nonetheless looking for a approach to make sense of all the pieces, whereas remaining optimistic concerning the future.

In keeping with a report by the Wall Avenue Journal, the island nation — which had encouraged cryptocurrency firms to really feel at house with their “copacetic regulatory contact” — has been rocked by the implosion of FTX. 

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The Bahamas, which was additionally exhausting hit by Hurricane Dorian in 2019 and the pandemic shortly afterward in 2020, was already struggling to search out methods to strengthen its economic system which depends closely on tourism and offshore banking for a bulk of its GDP. It appeared that the prime minister of the Bahamas, Philip Davis, and his authorities believed crypto may play a essential function within the island’s financial restoration.

Now, the group means that FTX’s sudden implosion has left a path of unemployment on the tiny 80-square-mile New Windfall Island, the place FTX was positioned. Whereas performing at full capability, FTX supplied employment for locals, because it reportedly spent over “$100,000 every week on catering” and in addition arrange a personal shuttle service to move staff across the island. FTX additionally employed numerous native Bahamians in areas equivalent to logistics, occasions planning, and regulatory compliance, in accordance with the WSJ. 

With the collapse of FTX, many high-spending foreigners who labored for the corporate and as soon as boosted the native economic system have reportedly fled the island, leaving Bahamian safety guards to now guard “practically vacant buildings.”

Associated: SBF, FTX execs reportedly spend hundreds of thousands on properties within the Bahamas

Within the aftermath of the autumn of FTX, some crypto group members have stated they really feel no sympathy for the results of the collapse on the tiny island nation.

Hacker Information consumer Matkoniecz commented, “Provided that Bahamas assist wealthy individuals and firms to evade taxes, my sympathy to detrimental penalties of which are restricted.” 

In the meantime, Exendroinient00 shared, “Nothing incorrect with inviting each scammer to do scamming in your islands,” probably in reference to the island’s legal guidelines that appear to incentivize offshore banking actions.

On Oct. 18, Cointelegraph reported that the Bahamas‘ securities regulator ordered the switch of FTX’s digital property to a pockets owned by the fee “for safekeeping.”

In keeping with an announcement from the Royal Bahamas Police Drive sent to Reuters on Nov 13, an investigation into doable prison misconduct over the insolvency of FTX is underway by monetary investigators and Bahamian securities regulators.