US government shuffles $350K of Alameda crypto — FTX victims still waiting on the real bag 💼

The U.S. government recently moved approximately $350,000 worth of cryptocurrency previously confiscated from accounts linked to FTX and Alameda Research, the trading firm affiliated with the exchange. The assets were seized roughly three years ago during the investigations that followed FTX's collapse. The size of the transfer points to administrative activity tied to the ongoing bankruptcy and recovery process rather than an imminent sale, and the funds may be directed into the pool of recovered assets used to reimburse creditors affected by FTX's 2022 failure.

FTX has announced a fourth round of repayments under its Chapter 11 recovery plan, allocating roughly $2.2 billion to creditors. The broader cryptocurrency market capitalization edged higher and major tokens traded in green after the transfer, indicating limited reaction. CoinGlass, however, reported $458.26 million in liquidations affecting over 107,000 traders in the preceding 24 hours. Given the liquidity of the broader market, the $350,000 transfer was relatively small and unlikely to have generated the selling pressure required to trigger liquidations of that scale, which were more consistent with sharp price swings and broader volatility.

The transfer coincided with a key legal development involving Sam Bankman-Fried. A U.S. appeals court upheld his fraud conviction, rejecting his argument that Alameda Research's investments could have appreciated and eventually repaid customers. As a result, his seven fraud convictions, $11 billion forfeiture order, and 25-year prison sentence remain intact as the bankruptcy estate continues its recovery work.