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Former Alameda Co-CEO Sam Trabucco Forfeits Yacht, Apartments to FTX Creditors

The FTX Cryptocurrency Derivatives Exchange logo on a laptop screen arranged in Riga, Latvia, Nov. 24, 2022. The implosion of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX empire dealt a harsh blow to the Bahamas’ ambitions to be a hub for the crypto industry, and it’s causing massive pain for locals who treated the now-bankrupt exchange like a bank. Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Sam Trabucco, one of Sam Bankman-Fried’s inner circle before the collapse of FTX and Alameda Research two years ago, has agreed to hand over a slew of properties, including his yacht, to creditors of the failed crypto exchange.

The former co-chief executive officer of Alameda purchased the 53-foot boat for $2.51 million in March 2022, just months before leaving the hedge fund controlled by Bankman-Fried. Trabucco also agreed to give up legal title to two apartments in San Francisco that he purchased in 2021 for a total of $8.7 million, according to a court filing on Nov. 10. He also agreed to transfer to the debtors all rights to claims filed against FTX for about $70 million, and these claims will be expunged, the filing said.  

Trabucco was managing Alameda’s operations alongside Caroline Ellison, who was recently sentenced to two years in prison. The two were appointed Alameda’s co-CEOs in August 2021 by Bankman-Fried, who is serving a 25-year prison term for orchestrating the multibillion dollar fraud at FTX. 

FTX, Alameda and related entities filed for bankruptcy in November 2022, after misusing customer funds. Trabucco left Alameda in August 2022.

After FTX fell apart, Trabucco stopped posting on X. Before then, his tweets revealed aggressive trading strategies, including “betting big” on momentum and taking risks, which contributed to Alameda’s demise. He often discussed poker and black-jack. He didn’t publicly acknowledge any wrongdoing or been accused of any wrongdoing. 

In October, FTX won court approval to fully repay customers whose digital assets were locked on the platform.

The settlement with Trabucco was dated Nov. 3, the filing said. A hearing to approve the settlement will be held on Dec. 12.     

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.