Tom Bravo’s founder says the firm will permanently emerge from the crypto post-FTX fiasco.
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Thomas Bravo pulls out of crypto investments after FTX bets fall flat The company's founder maintains his faith in blockchain technology.
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Thomas Bravo, which manages nearly $160 billion in assets under management, has decided to permanently exit the crypto market following its ill-fated investment in FTX, Orlando Bravo, head of the top private equity firm, said in a recent interview with CNBC.
The Miami-based tech investor was part of a group of investors who led a $900 million investment in FTX by 2021, valuing the exchange at $18 billion. The company has invested approximately $130 million in FTX Trading, the operator and owner of FTX.com.
However, Toma Bravo, along with other investors, suffered huge losses following the collapse of FTX.
FTX's downfall began when concerns about its financial practices surfaced, leading to large withdrawals by clients. The situation quickly escalated, with FTX unable to meet its exit requirements, eventually leading to a bankruptcy filing in November 2022.
The exchange was exposed as a giant house of cards built on fraud, misappropriation of customer funds and inefficient management and control.
In March this year, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to all charges.
Following FTX's collapse, Toma Bravo and other investors, including Paradigm Operations and Sequoia Capital, were charged with making misleading statements promoting FTX and contributing to its failure.
Bravo said the company will no longer be involved in the crypto sector after losing its bet on FTX.
“Once you make a mistake and once you get burned, our philosophy and my philosophy is never touch it,” Bravo explained.
Despite the failure of FTX, Bravo still believes in the potential of blockchain technology.
“Personally, I'm a believer in blockchain. I think it's a very powerful way to do a lot of things and for a lot of things, and I've always believed that,” Bravo said.
FTX's losses are almost over as the fund recovers $16 billion
FTX's bankruptcy saga is nearing its conclusion, having successfully recovered almost $16 billion and is ready to repay customers in full, including interest.
The development follows Bankman-Fried's incarceration at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center. Co-workers Caroline Ellison, Nishad Singh and Gary Wang pleaded guilty to federal crimes.
Amidst these proceedings, the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware is scheduled to hold a crucial hearing on October 7 to confirm FTX's Chapter 11 reorganization plan.
If approved, the plan will allow more than 98% of customers and unsecured creditors to be paid in full. But the repayment calculation, based on the value of bitcoin at the time of bankruptcy, has faced criticism from creditors, challenging the fairness of the proposed plan.
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