FTX Customer Claims Portal Update: How It Affects Derivative Positions and USD Balances

Key Takeaways

The Customer Claims Portal has been updated to provide more transparency on derivative positions.

The initial and amended customer claims schedules filed on March 15, 2023, and June 27, 2023, respectively, differ in how they handle open derivative positions.

The valuation of derivative positions is based on FTX exchange pricing as of the Petition Date or shutdown time.

These updates do not impact the overall value of customer claims but may change the displayed USD balance.

Update on Customer Claims Portal

The Customer Claims Portal has undergone an update to better represent derivative positions held by customers. Previously, all open derivative positions were included in the USD balance. However, in response to customer requests for more transparency, an amended customer claims schedule was filed on June 27, 2023. This amendment breaks out open derivative positions as of the Petition Date (November 11, 2022) into separate line items, showing quantities of contracts held by derivative ticker.

Valuation of Derivative Positions

The valuation of derivative positions is based on FTX exchange pricing as of the Petition Date or shutdown time. For FTX.COM and FTX.US customers, the relevant date and time are November 11, 2022, at 15:00:00 UTC. For FTX EU customers, it's November 12, 2022, at 03:28:48 UTC. The final USD equivalent valuation will be determined at a later date.

Impact on USD Balance

The full market price of any open derivative position as of the Petition Date is netted from the USD balance so it can be shown separately on its own line item. This means that your USD balance may appear different, but it does not impact the overall value of your claim. To revert to the USD amount you are accustomed to seeing, you can value all your scheduled derivatives as of the Petition Date or shutdown time and add it to the USD ticker.

Why Some USD Balances May Appear Negative

It's worth noting that your USD balance may appear negative due to the new methodology. For instance, if your USD balance was $5,000 versus $20,000 in derivative positions, your USD balance in the amended schedules would show as negative $5,000. However, this does not represent the final value of your claim.

Image source: Shutterstock