Google and BlackRock Almost Funded the Exchange Before the FTX Crisis

Crypto News – Decrypt reports that Google and BlackRock are back on the brink of investing in FTX.

Google and BlackRock Almost Funded the Exchange Before the FTX Crisis

Significant documents that shed light on the suspected involvement of these corporate behemoths have surfaced during Sam Bankman-Fried’s ongoing criminal trial as the former leader of FTX. During his testimony, Can Sun, the former general counsel of FTX, disclosed an important spreadsheet that outlined the company’s strategy for raising money. FTX was aggressively looking for investors for an unfinished funding round, according to this spreadsheet, which has just become public.

Can Sun claims that FTX started its Series C financing activities in the late summer and early fall of 2022. According to the spreadsheet, 15 possible investors—among them BlackRock, Google, and Apollo—expressed interest in joining this funding round. BlackRock and Google saw investment opportunities as having a “medium” likelihood of success. Notably, before FTX’s severe financial difficulties last November, both businesses had performed due diligence on the company.

The Cryptocurrency Industry Attracts Google and BlackRock

Both BlackRock and Google were analyzing the exchange, while FTX was on the verge of collapsing. According to CEO Larry Fink, BlackRock had already invested $24 million in FTX, and Google had a tie to Bankman-Fried through a cap table despite not making a direct investment.

This information emphasizes how active the cryptocurrency market is and how it has captured the attention of big businesses like BlackRock and Google. It also raises concerns about how the connection between conventional finance and the cryptocurrency sector is changing.