- Sam Bankman-Fried and two of his close colleagues gave nearly $80 million to political committees.
- Money went to FTX executives’ own PACs, plus individual candidates like President Joe Biden.
- “The bankruptcy estate may come calling,” said Yesha Yadav of Vanderbilt University.
Sam Bankman-Fried and two of his close colleagues at the now-bankrupt FTX donated nearly $80 million to political candidates and causes, but those who received the money may have to return it as the company tries to pay back its creditors.
That’s because bankruptcy courts often let companies claw back the money that they have given to others in the two years prior to filing for bankruptcy, according to Yesha Yadav, a law professor at Vanderbilt University with expertise in financial and securities regulation. Sometimes, that period is longer than two years, she said.
Even the political candidates who received money from Sam Bankman-Fried and told USA TODAY that they have donated the money to charity or plan to donate it to charity could be forced to give it back, Yadav said. Despite the good intention behind it, “the bankruptcy estate may come calling.”
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Bankman-Fried and two of his closest colleagues – FTX’s director of engineering Nishad Singh and co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets Ryan Salame – gave $79.8 million to political campaigns and committees from September 2020 to November 2022, according to records…
