Galaxy Digital, led by Mike Novogratz, oversees the liquidation of FTX assets following the latter’s bankruptcy in November 2022. Significantly, traders who fear an oversaturated market exert considerable influence over the discussions surrounding FTX’s financial unraveling.
FTX plans to liquidate an extensive range of cryptocurrencies, including $1.16 billion in Solana and $560 million in Bitcoin. Moreover, the liquidation process will commence with $50 million blocks weekly, eventually ramping up to $100 million. Besides strict guidelines, a 10-day prior notice for “insider-affiliated” tokens is also mandatory, ensuring that creditors and the US Trustee are informed in advance.
Additionally, FTX aims to explore cryptocurrency hedging contracts, initially focusing on Bitcoin and Ethereum. Hence, these offerings could attract a niche market, depending on the market’s absorption capacity.
However, the market impact is already palpable, especially for Solana. Its price dipped by 4% to $18.50 over the past week, shortly after FTX’s considerable Solana holdings became public. Furthermore, these holdings comprise almost 16% of Solana’s total circulating supply. Consequently, FTX aims to mitigate market disruptions by releasing just $9.2 million of Solana tokens each month.
While FTX and Alameda Research’s combined Bitcoin holdings are less concerning—accounting for merely 1% of Bitcoin’s weekly trading volume—their less liquid tokens like Dogecoin, TRON, and Polygon raise eyebrows. These assets, ranging from $20 to $30 million, represent a hefty 6 to 12% of the weekly trading volumes for these cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin and Ethereum also experienced slight declines, losing 0.9% and 1% respectively. However, Solana suffered more, dropping by 2.2%. Nevertheless, much of this impact was already factored in due to news released earlier in the week.
In conclusion, the steps taken by Galaxy Digital and FTX are being closely watched by market experts and traders alike. With looming concerns about market saturation, the managed liquidation approach aims to mitigate immediate market shocks, but its longer-term effects remain uncertain.
