Attorney John Deaton has taken a swipe at FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried after the exchange’s Solana holdings soared from $1B to $6B.
Solana (SOL) is currently one of the best-performing crypto assets in 2023, which has left many investors stunned.
SOL Rises From the Dust
As of this time last year, SOL was changing hands below $10 following the collapse of FTX, an exchange that championed the coin.
Interestingly, SOL’s devastating plunge is now a thing of the past, as the coin now ranks among the top-performing cryptocurrencies this year, surging 853% year-to-date (YTD).
At press time, SOL currently trades at $94, up 8.5% over the past 24 hours. It is also the fifth-largest cryptocurrency, with a valuation of $40.22 billion, having recently overtaken XRP’s position.
FTX’s SOL Holdings Spike
To shed more light on SOL’s astounding performance, crypto sleuth Mr. Huber highlighted the impact of the coin’s recent price increase on FTX’s SOL holdings.
In a tweet yesterday, Mr. Huber recounted how the price of SOL bottomed on September 13, when a bankruptcy court approved the liquidation of FTX’s assets.
The crypto sleuth pointed out that FTX’s SOL holdings plunged to around $1 billion following the coin’s price dip on September 13. With a unit of SOL changing hands at $94, Mr. Huber stated that the exchange’s SOL holdings have now grown to $6 billion.
For context, the price of SOL dipped to around $17 on September 13. Aside from SOL, Mr. Huber mentioned that FTX’s native token, FTT, also collapsed on the same day. However, he added that things have returned to how they were before the devastating collapse of FTX.
Deaton Composes Special Message for SBF
Reacting to Huber’s tweet, prominent crypto lawyer composed a special message for embattled FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF).
Deaton wants SBF to be updated about the happenings in the crypto space, especially the massive growth of FTX’s SOL holding, the expected launch of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), and the upcoming Bitcoin halving.
In addition, Deaton also wants SBF to be informed that 2024/2025 could be crypto’s biggest year ever, given the numerous events expected to occur within the period.
“Then ask him: how that feels a**hole?” an excerpt from Deaton’s message read.
Someone visit Sam and tell him: “FTX’s SOL holdings are now worth almost 6 billion from 1 billion since the bottom” and that the Spot ETF is about to happen, along with the halving in April, and 2024-2025 could be Crypto’s biggest year ever. Then ask him: how’s that feel asshole? https://t.co/nn1hkSfJ4I
— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) December 22, 2023
FTX Collapse and SBF Legal Woes
It is common knowledge that SBF made lots of enemies in the crypto space following the collapse of FTX last year. The former leading crypto exchange suffered a devastating implosion last year due to mismanagement of customers’ funds.
The exchange’s collapse spread panic throughout the crypto market, with FTT and SOL bearing the major brunt. While FTT is FTX’s native token, SOL is a crypto project championed by Bankman-Fried.
FTX’s largest crypto holding is SOL. According to CoinGecko data, the exchange holds a whopping 55.8 million SOL. At the current exchange rate of $94 per unit, FTX’s SOL holding is worth around $5.24 billion.
Meanwhile, SBF recently faced his verdict by a jury in the U.S. following the FTX fall. The former CEO was found guilty of all seven charges leveled against him, including fraud and money laundering.
While he is currently awaiting sentencing, legal commentators suggest Bankman-Fried faces a possible maximum sentence of 115 years in prison.
Read the full article here
