Bankrupt Crypto Exchange FTX Unstakes and Distributes 186,000 SOL Tokens

In a shift that fits well into its monthly asset liquidation pattern, the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and its sister trading company Alameda Research have once again begun a large-scale transfer of Solana (SOL)

In a development that aligns with the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and its sister trading company Alameda Research’s monthly asset liquidation pattern, they have once again begun a large-scale transfer of Solana (SOL) from their staking reserves.

About six hours ago, they unstaked and spread across 22 separate addresses 186,000 SOL tokens valued at about $21.56 million. This follows a long-established pattern of on-the-10th-of-the-month moves that increasingly look like a systematic, strategic unwind of SOL holdings.

FTX/Alameda 每月十来号的固定 SOL 转出时间：6 小时前将从质押中赎回的 18.6 万枚 $SOL ( $2156 万) 分发转移给 22 个地址。根据此前记录，多数收到 SOL 的地址后续会 SOL 转进 Coinbase 或 Binance。

FTX/Alameda 质押地址从 2023 年 11 月以来，已经通过上面这种方式累计赎回并转出了 803.1 万枚… https://t.co/GT7Oot1k1Ppic.twitter.com/bUo49WvAmP

— 余烬 (@EmberCN) April 11, 2025

Many see the unstaking and redistribution as preparation for a liquidation of assets. This view is supported by the historical record of past transactions, which shows a clear trend: when FTX and Alameda send Solana to other addresses, those addresses almost always send the Solana on to centralized exchanges such as Coinbase and Binance. Market analysts watch these movements closely, and for good reason. They happen to precede some of the biggest sell-offs in Solana that we have seen all year.

A Billion-Dollar Exit Strategy

Starting in November 2023, the estate of FTX/Alameda has executed transfers with notable consistency. In total, they have unstaked and staked back to the system 8.031 million SOL tokens. At current valuations, that represents about $1.03 billion. The transfers into the centralized exchanges have occurred at an average price of $128.30 per SOL token. With the price of SOL ranging from about $108 to $148 during the various phases of this market, these transfers do not seem to correlate with some kind of artificial price movement. They simply appear to be regular transfers.

Despite being intended to maximize recovery amounts for creditors, the series of large-scale redemptions from the FTX estate have vexed SOL holders and traders. It’s definitely not a good look when you’re trying to maintain the price of an asset. Each time creditors cash out, they do so with substantial amounts of SOL. Pressing the sell button on FTX’s preferred asset is the very definition of a red flag. These funds are supposed to go to judges, attorneys, and creditors, not to FTX execs and SOL ding-a-lings. I mean really: Who in their right mind would work this hard for the creditors if they weren’t already cruising for a big payoff?!

As it stands, FTX/Alameda controls a considerable amount of staked SOL, which amounts to 5.359 million tokens. That is worth about a half a billion dollars. And, if you can believe it, this is a picture of what we have left. Meaning, if I were FTX, I would be doing what you see in the picture above.

In other words, don’t expect this part of the Recovery Plan to be completed anytime soon. Expect the going-concern nature of FTX to be factored into the picture of what comes next.

The digital assets held by FTX have been steadily liquidated since the exchange’s spectacular collapse in November 2022. Billions in frozen user funds were tied up across trading accounts at the time. Founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s financial mismanagement and the global fallout from it have been the main story of the last eight months. While the court cases move forward, though, the estate of the exchange has been granted permission to sell off digital assets to pay back creditors. And if I’m doing the fractions correctly, the SOL represents one of the largest individual holdings in FTX’s pre-bankruptcy portfolio.

Implications for the Solana Ecosystem

These SOL liquidations occurring en masse and in a steady flow have complicated matters for the overall Solana ecosystem. Although, in other respects, things seem to be on an upward trajectory for Solana—network expansion, developer involvement, and observable on-chain activity move in the right direction—the unfailing flow of unstaked SOL into exchanges means Solana’s native asset is still working its way back from the low it hit as part of the fallout from its unfortunate close association with FTX.

FTX’s implosion caused a significant blow to Solana’s reputation. Sam Bankman