The FTX Estate appears bullish on Solana as it has reportedly staked about 5.5 million Solana (SOL), worth $122 million. The development comes amid fears that the bankrupt crypto exchange liquidating a large portion of their SOL holdings and inducing a bearish trend.
On October 14, the blockchain tracking platform Whale Alert, revealed that 5.5 million SOL was transferred between two unknown wallets. Later, a pseudonymous on-chain researcher with the username Ashpool, identified that the FTX exchange was behind this whale transaction.
Ashpool also revealed that the FTX exchange had handed over the said 5.5 million SOL to the Figment Staking Service, an active validator on the Solana network.
In September, a United States court approved the sale of $1.3 billion in SOL from FTX to facilitate creditors’ repayment. Following the news, concerns were raised about the exchange’s Solana ecosystem which contributed to the asset seeing about a 6% slump in price.
Also, about 9.1 million SOLs worth approximately $212 million owned by Alameda Research – FTX’s defunct trading wing – were reportedly liquidated on October 6, adding fuel to the fears of a possible market selloff by the FTX estate.
However, FTX’s latest move to stake 5.5 million SOL seems to have calmed the community down. It can be interpreted that the exchange has retained its SOL investment for now, a reassuring move for traders anticipating liquidation.
SOL is currently trading at $23.37, up 7.58% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Coinstats.
Despite its bankruptcy status, FTX is still considered a major figure in the Solana ecosystem, holding 10% of the total supply of SOL. The exchange reportedly holds about 55.8 million SOL, worth $1.16 billion, making Solana the firm’s largest share of crypto assets.
In addition to its SOL holdings, FTX also has 560 BTC worth $20,500 million and 192,600 ETH worth $112,600 million, among other crypto assets.
The co-founder of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, is currently facing trial at a district court in Manhattan, where he is accused of fraud and conspiracy charges. If found guilty, he might serve up to 115 years in prison.
