FTX NFTs provided loopholes for non-Bahamas residents wishing to withdraw funds

FTX Group has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US, and customers have been fighting to get their money out of the platform – by any means necessary.

The crypto exchange had reactivated withdrawals on Thursday, but only in the Bahamas, where its headquarters and many employees are located.

Some users without a Bahamian account even found a way to bypass the system by using FTX’s NFT marketplace.

The marketplace tracked over $50 million in volume in the past 24 hours despite a Bahamas securities regulator freezing the assets of local subsidiary FTX Digital Markets (FDM).

Bahamian residents were buying NFTs on the FTX market at inflated prices and withdrawing money for non-residents, UpOnlyTV host Cobie tweeted.

A closer look at collections on the market showed some extreme price jumps for some otherwise unremarkable NFTs.

For example, on November 10, FTX Crypto Cup 2022 Key #25162 sold for $2.5 million when the NFTs in this collection traded for less than $1 days earlier. Activity for the collection only picked up between November 10 and November 11 when it saw dozens of trades in the six- and seven-figure range.

The Great Ape collection and its Ape Art NFTs saw their first jump from $1 to $500 trading, while the most expensive Ape Art #312 went for a $10 million bid on Friday.

One user, AlgodTrading, was crippled by crypto Twitter for Offering a fee of 100,000 to anyone who can help him “KYC on FTX.” However, he replied to the screenshot, claim that he did not “purchase any discounted claims/assets or accounts” and that “these rumors are false.”

The identity of those behind the Bahamian accounts that help non-residents is unknown and the legality surrounding this is unclear.

The FTX.com website states that “depositing and minting of NFTs is not supported on FTX International” and directs users to its FTX US NFT marketplace.

While bids are still being placed on FTX International’s NFT marketplace, the last trade occurred at 02:47 ET on November 11th for an FTX Crypto Cup 2022 Key NFT for $500, indicating that this exit ramp is no longer available.

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