7 October 2024
A repayment plan was approved, but crypto would not be returned in kind
Judge John Dorsey approved FTX’s wind-down plan at a hearing in Delaware. Recovery depended on selling assets and settling competing claims, rather than restarting the exchange. Customers’ claims were measured in dollars using values at the November 2022 bankruptcy. That distinction mattered: receiving the full dollar claim would not restore the original number of bitcoin or other tokens. Some customers objected because crypto prices had risen while their money was locked up. The approved plan offered a path to repayment, with distributions still to come.
3 January 2025
The recovery trust took over the wind-down
The plan became effective on 3 January and the FTX Recovery Trust began its role of turning assets into cash and distributing recoveries. The trust would keep operating while liquidation and claims work continued. Approval had established the framework; implementation now required identifying allowed claims and arranging payments. For account holders, the next practical question was whether their claim qualified for a distribution.
Effective-date announcement · FTX · 16 December 2024 · Initial distribution announcement · FTX · 7 February 2025 · Q2 2026 report · FTX Recovery Trust · filed 17 August 2026 · PDF
18 February 2025
The first payment round targeted smaller allowed claims
The first round focused on the plan’s Convenience Classes rather than every category of creditor at once. FTX scheduled their initial distribution for 18 February. Before that date, it announced that the funds had been transferred to BitGo and Kraken for distribution. Eligible creditors were expected to receive money within one to three business days. The round was limited to allowed claims whose holders had completed the required steps; it did not cover every former account at once. Identity checks, tax forms and registration with a distribution provider were part of the process. This was the start of staged repayment rather than a single payment to everyone. The transfer to providers moved funds closer to eligible creditors, while the timing of availability in each account depended on the provider.
31 July 2026
Another US$900 million was distributed
By July 2026, repayments had moved beyond the first round. The trust completed a further distribution of about US$900 million on 31 July, according to its August financial report. The announced schedule put cumulative recoveries for allowed international and US customer entitlement claims at 105% of their claim amounts. General unsecured and digital-asset loan claims were scheduled to reach 103%, and Convenience Class claims 120%. These percentages described bankruptcy claims, with payments subject to eligibility. A 105% recovery on a US$1,000 allowed claim would equal US$1,050; it would not mean returning crypto worth US$1,000 at today’s price. Different claim classes therefore had different recoveries, and the percentage alone did not tell every customer’s story.
Fifth distribution · FTX · 17 July 2026 · Q2 2026 report · FTX Recovery Trust · filed 17 August 2026 · PDF · Plan approval · Reuters · 7 October 2024 · Customers report receiving July payments · Cointelegraph · 31 July 2026
17 August 2026 · report filed
The accounts showed why recovery was still unfinished
The trust’s unaudited report recorded US$10.312 billion distributed through 30 June, followed by the July payment. It said interest-bearing allowed and estimated allowed claims had received, or had funds reserved for, at least 100% cumulative recovery. Money reserved for a claim was not the same as money received by its holder. Claims reconciliation and outstanding interest therefore remained part of the wind-down. The report confirmed substantial distributions without establishing that every customer had been paid.
Q2 2026 report · FTX Recovery Trust · filed 17 August 2026 · PDF · Distribution eligibility guidance · FTX · updated 13 September 2026
The evidence
Sources for this update
- 01Plan approval · Reuters · 7 October 2024
- 02Initial distribution announcement · FTX · 7 February 2025
- 03Fifth distribution · FTX · 17 July 2026
- 04Q2 2026 report · FTX Recovery Trust · filed 17 August 2026 · PDF
- 05Distribution eligibility guidance · FTX · updated 13 September 2026
- 06Effective-date announcement · FTX · 16 December 2024
- 07Customers report receiving July payments · Cointelegraph · 31 July 2026
Where the story stands
The story continues when the evidence does.
FTX’s recovery is a liquidation, not a return to trading. Its September guidance says disputed claims may later become allowed, while identity checks, tax forms and distribution-provider registration remain conditions for payment. Some holders can forfeit distributions if they do not complete the required steps in time. The next developments are further claim decisions and distributions, rather than a single outcome shared by every former customer.