Court documents exposed that FTX Digital Markets spent a whopping $40 million from January to September 2023 before being declared bankrupt due to a lack of liquidity.
Over $15 million was used for luxurious accommodations, with $5.8 million going to the Albany Hotel where its CEO Sam Bankman-Fried had a $30 million penthouse.
About $7 million was utilized for meals and entertainment, with half of it being allocated to catering services. Flights cost FTX almost $4 million, and more than $500,000 was consumed by postage and delivery.
The company also made a private agreement with an airline to ship their Amazon orders to the Bahamas since Amazon did not provide delivery there.
FTX supplied their staff in the Bahamas with free cars, gasoline, and limitless, fully-paid trips to any of their offices around the world.
In December 2023, an ex-employee described the company’s work environment as “cult-like” and “foolishly inefficient.” Additionally, FTX made a series of contributions to charitable causes in the Bahamas.