FTX, a bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange, reportedly paid over $25 million in hush money to whistleblowers before its collapse in November 2022, according to a report from a court-appointed examiner. The US Department of Justice (DOJ) appointed Robert J. Cleary, a lawyer with experience in the Unabomber case, to investigate FTX as part of the exchange’s ongoing bankruptcy case. Cleary’s report, filed on Thursday, references an investigation conducted by law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, which was hired by FTX CEO John J. Ray III to look into whistleblower complaints regarding misconduct at the company. Quinn Emanuel found that FTX failed to properly investigate the complaints but did pay out over $25 million to seven individuals who raised concerns. Joseph Bankman, a professor at Stanford Law School and the father of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, reportedly helped resolve some of the complaints. The whistleblowers accused FTX and its associated entities of misleading investors, mishandling customer funds, violating commodity regulations, engaging in market manipulation and insider trading, and failing to implement appropriate anti-money laundering controls and compliance measures, among other issues. FTX collapsed and filed for bankruptcy in November 2022 after allegations that Bankman-Fried misused customer deposits by loaning billions of dollars to Alameda Research, the firm’s trading arm. The exchange’s collapse had a significant impact on crypto prices, and Bankman-Fried was arrested by US federal authorities the following month. In November, Bankman-Fried was found guilty of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, securities fraud, commodities fraud, and money laundering. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to pay $11 billion in forfeiture. Bankman-Fried is currently appealing his conviction and sentence.