Cryptocurrency wallets linked to bankrupt trading firm Alameda Research, a subsidiary of FTX, were seen transferring funds just days after former CEO Sam Bankman Freed was released on $250 million bail.
The transfer of funds from Alameda wallets aroused the curiosity of the community, but more than that, the way these funds were transferred attracted the attention of the community. It was discovered that the Alameda wallet was exchanging ERC-20 bits for Ether (ETH)/Tether (USDT), and then ETH and USDT were sent through instant exchanges and mixers.
For example, a wallet address starting with 0x64e9 received over 600 ETH from wallets owned by Alameda, part of which was exchanged for USDT and the other part of the transaction was sent to ChangeNow.
Network analyst ZachXBT noted that the Alameda wallet ended up exchanging funds for bitcoin (BTC) using decentralized exchanges such as FixedFloat and ChangeNow. These platforms are often used by hackers and attackers to hide transaction routes.
Funds are exchanged for BTC
bc1q67r2dc46ve66pe2qr9smaz5ktzefehugky5sv6
bc1qk4mnz4qkh9vfcm95z6ww9czhzjsknjr8s457mg
bc1qwx3herf245w6k9ljjfgdsngtvjsp3qs6znp8dd
bc1q7p22k0ly0pmy04ermzu76uyylveehu9cusrcnp pic.twitter.com/ueYLjQOalZ— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) December 28, 2022
The never ending saga of FTX sees a new twist every day, and the latest transfer of funds to extract whatever is left in these cryptocurrency wallets is worrying the community.
Many have speculated that the scheme for exchanging these funds looks like exploitation, but given Bankman-Freed’s notorious criminal past, many have speculated that the withdrawal of what is left in these wallets may be insider work.
Call from home…
— Azcrypt (@ZcryptA) December 28, 2022
Others questioned the terms of the bail and asked why he was given internet access. Single user wrote that the former CEO was “desperate to get the money out”, adding, “Why didn’t his bail condition include computer/internet access?”
Related: US Department of Justice Investigates $372M FTX Exploit: Report
The current movement of funds from Alameda wallets coincided with the release of banker Freed on bail, because immediately after FTX filed for bankruptcy on November 11, the exchange’s wallets were hacked into millions of dollars. The US Department of Justice is also currently investigating the $352 million FTX exploit immediately after filing for bankruptcy.
