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FTX’s head of institutional sales resigns, says team was 'completely in the dark' about insolvency

Quick Take

  • Zane Tackett, head of institutional sales at embattled crypto exchange FTX, resigned on Nov. 8.
  • Tackett said he and his team was “left completely in the dark” about FTX’s insolvency.

Zane Tackett, head of institutional sales at FTX, sent a letter to clients stating that his team was “completely in the dark” about the firm's potential insolvency over the course of this week. 

He informed VIP clients of the embattled crypto exchange of his resignation in a message — obtained by The Block from two sources — sent late on Nov. 10. 

“Foremost I would like to make it abundantly clear that the VIP team was left completely in the dark and were in no way aware that FTX was insolvent or that customer assets were at any point not backed 1:1,” he said.

“I wanted to make sure clients didn’t hold ill will towards my team for telling them things are fine when they were also completely in the dark,” Tackett told The Block, in response to questions about the message. “They were also fooled.”

The VIP team struggled to handle withdrawals in the wake of Binance announcing it would sell its stake in FTX's native token FTT. Those headwinds resulted in tensions between FTX leadership and the VIP team, according to several sources. 

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Tackett tweeted earlier today that his FTX Slack account had been deactivated. The Block contacted FTX for comment, but did not receive a response by 11.30 p.m. ET.

The news comes with an array of crypto companies — ranging from exchanges to venture capital investors — struggling to withdraw funds from FTX, after the stunning collapse of the company earlier this week.

Earlier today, the Wall Street Journal reported that FTX had lent Alameda Research, its sister trading firm, billions of dollars in customer assets.


Disclaimer: The former CEO and majority shareholder of The Block has disclosed a series of loans from former FTX and Alameda founder Sam Bankman-Fried.

© 2023 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

About Authors

Ryan Weeks is deals editor at the The Block, focused on fundraising, M&A and institutional trends in the crypto space, among other things. He is particularly interested in investigative work — so please send tips! Ryan previously worked at Financial News, Dow Jones as a fintech correspondent in London. Prior to that, he wrote for several different publications, including Sifted, AltFi and Wired. Beyond journalism, Ryan is a keen reader and writer. He enjoys all things active, especially running, rugby, climbing and tennis.
Frank Chaparro is Host of The Scoop podcast and Director of Special Projects. He also writes a biweekly newsletter. Chaparro started his career at Business Insider, where he specialized in the intersection of digital assets and Wall Street, market structure, and financial technology. Soon after joining Business Insider out of Fordham University, Chaparro was interviewing top finance and tech executives, including billionaire Mark Cuban, “Flash Boys” star Brad Katsuyama, Cboe Global Markets CEO Ed Tilly, and New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley. In 2018, he become a sought after reporter in the crypto world, interviewing luminaries such as Tyler Winklevoss, the cofounder of Gemini, Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of Circle, and Fundstrat head Tom Lee. For inquiries or tips, email [email protected].

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