Turkey’s financial authority investigates FTX’s collapse

The Turkish regulator joined the United States and the Bahamas in investigating the exchange’s fall.

Turkey’s Financial Crimes Investigation Agency is the latest authority to announce investigations into crypto exchange FTX after its collapse and bankruptcy filing on Nov.11.

Along with FTX, the agency will look into people and institutions related to the platform — including banks, electronic money institutions and crypto-asset providers — according to an official statement from Nov. 14. The regulator also noted that it had been monitoring FTX’s activities in accordance with the country’s Anti-Money Laundering laws.

FTX Turkey, FTX’s regional subsidiary, provided a Google Form for users seeking to receive their funds, without specifying a delivery date. On its website and Twitter account, a note asked users to share their International Bank Account Number address to proceed with the refund process.

Turkey is one of the most relevant emerging markets for the crypto industry, with nearly 8 million people in the country engaged with cryptocurrencies, according to figures from the local crypto exchange Paribu.

Roughly 130 companies in FTX Group — including FTX Trading, FTX US, under West Realm Shires Services, and Alameda Research — started proceedings to file for bankruptcy in the United States on Nov. 11 following the exchange’s dramatic collapse during the previous days.

In addition to Turkey, the United States and the Bahamas announced investigations into the bankrupt crypto exchange during the past week. In the U.S., the Securities Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice are looking into the matter.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Manhattan district of New York has also begun to investigate the circumstances leading up to the exchange’s fall. The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation in the state of California additionally announced its own investigation regarding the “apparent failure”.

In the Bahamas, an investigation of possible criminal misconduct is underway by financial investigators and securities regulators.