The largest media outlets again want to get the data of FTX customers
Date: 2023-06-27 Author: Karina Ziganova Categories: BUSINESS
The largest media outlets — Bloomberg, Dow Jones & Company, The New York Times and the Financial Times — appealed the decision of US bankruptcy judge John Dorsey to hide the names of clients of the FTX crypto exchange from the public. It is reported by Reuters.
Lawyers for media companies said FTX is not eligible for a "new and radical exception" in bankruptcy disclosure.
"We believe that keeping the list of clients in trade secrets is vital to improve redress for everyone in bankruptcy reorganization," the lawyers said.
Moreover, when companies go bankrupt, they usually insist on disclosing the names and amounts owed to their creditors. However, here the court wants to keep the names secret so that they do not become victims of fraud.
"The recent bankruptcy of cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network shows the types of fraud that disclosure of customer names can lead to," the judge explained.
After the judge in the Celsius case ordered the disclosure of customer names, Celsius users witnessed an increase in phishing attacks by scammers who posed as bankruptcy attorneys and Celsius employees, he said.
This isn't the first time the media has objected to keeping FTX's customer names secret. They filed another objection on May 3. Many experts believe that if user data is known, FTX customers can repeat the experience of another bankrupt cryptocurrency company, Celsius. The attacks ranged from attempts to connect to wallets via messengers to emails using Celsius logos and impersonating the company's lawyers.
FTX and more than 100 affiliates filed for bankruptcy protection in November after the company misused customer money. FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges of stealing billions of dollars from customers to cover the losses of his trading firm, Alameda Research.
