Summary of National Address with respect to the FTX Collapse - Sen. The Hon. Ryan Pinder KC, Attorney General

00:00:00 - 00:20:00

The Attorney General of the Bahamas gives a national address regarding the FTX digital markets collapse. He discusses the actions taken by the Bahamian Securities Commission and urges all authorities to exercise prudence and restraint in their public commentary while investigations are ongoing.

• 00:00:00 The Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas statement on the FTX digital markets Limited situation is that the company is experiencing a corporate failure due to questionable internal management practices and corporate governance. The FTX group of companies was experiencing a liquidity crunch when customers rushed to withdraw all of their assets simultaneously. The Securities Commission of the Bahamas was able to move quickly in taking action to suspend FTX digital markets license, place the company in provisional liquidation, and freeze the assets of the company.
• 00:05:00 The video discusses the FTX digital markets collapse and the actions taken by the Bahamian Securities Commission. The commission was the first regulator in the world to take significant steps with respect to the FTX group of companies, which has operations and regulated activities throughout the world. The video emphasizes the importance of due process and the rule of law, and says that the public should trust the Bahamian financial services industry will be strengthened as events continue to unfold. The digital assets industry is still in its infancy and there are still no agreed upon standards globally, but regulators around the world are still grappling with the issue of how to regulate digital assets.
• 00:10:00 The Bahamas enacted the digital asset and registered exchanges Act in 2020, which is reflective of the best practices observed in the industry. In March of this year, assistant United States Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere Affairs, Brian Nichols, noted that the Bahamas has a long been an important financial center, and praised FTX for its pioneering responsible regulation. FTX went into crisis in July of 2021, when it was incorporated in the Bahamas and applied to be registered as a digital asset business under the Dare Act. In September of 2021, the Securities Commission after many months of prior engagement approved FTX digital markets licensed to operate. FTX operated globally for over two years before coming to the Bahamas. Shortly after coming to the Bahamas, FTX faced its own severe insolvency crisis. However, the regulator has taken various protective measures, which the government will not disclose until the investigations are complete. The government urges all authorities to exercise prudence and restraint in their public commentary while the investigations are ongoing.
• 00:15:00 This video discusses the FTX digital markets collapse and the SEN Senator's views on the matter. The SEN Senator urges prudence and accuracy in all future filings and the Bahamian Financial Intelligence Unit and the Royal Bahamas Police Force will continue their investigations. He also notes that FTX came to the Bahamas for reasons unrelated to regulatory scrutiny and the Bahamas is not one of the countries without regulatory authority over digital assets.
• 00:20:00 The Attorney General of the Bahamas addresses the global community regarding the collapse of digital asset company FTX. The island nation remains confident in its regulatory framework, and is confident that the turbulence currently being experienced by the digital asset sector will pass.