A US Government Address Is Moving Alameda Funds

A US Government controlled address (0x2BF) holding funds seized from the now-defunct trading firm, Alameda Research, has just moved some of their funds for the first time in almost two years. The address made a redemption for 82.44K AragonDAO (ANT) tokens into 209 ETH, or $556K worth. Shortly after the first transaction, a second address (0x8Fe), which also holds Alameda-seized funds, also made a redemption of 76.65K ANT tokens for 194.5 ETH, or $518K worth. Currently the redeemed ETH remains in their respective wallets.

This "redemption" action is significant, as it involves actively engaging with a token's smart contract to convert ANT into its underlying ETH value. This isn't a simple market sale but a specific on-chain operation to liquidate the ANT holdings, which is a necessary step in consolidating assets into more liquid forms like ETH.

These assets were originally owned by Alameda Research, the trading arm of Sam Bankman-Fried’s cryptocurrency exchange, FTX. With the insolvency of both FTX and Alameda Research in November 2022, the funds were later seized by the US Government and distributed to several US Government controlled addresses to be held as legal proceedings progress. While it has not been officially announced, the redemptions could be part of a larger proceeding to kick off the repayment process for creditors and affected parties from the bankruptcy, who are expected to receive their repayments within the next few months.

For creditors who have been waiting since the 2022 collapse, any movement from these seized-asset wallets is a major development. This activity represents one of the first tangible on-chain actions that aligns with the long-anticipated creditor repayment plan, turning seized, illiquid tokens into distributable assets.