FTX’s venture arm Alameda invested over a billion in Bitcoin [BTC] mining firm

• Alameda reportedly invested over a billion dollars in the Bitcoin mining firm – Genesis Digital
• The first recorded investment was in August last year, while the last was in April 2022

FTX and Alameda breakdown controversies continue to hit the spotlight in the cryptosphere. The latest revelation gives insight into Alameda’s investments. According to a report by Bloomberg, FTX’s venture arm had high hopes for Bitcoin mining as it invested as much as $1.15 billion in Genesis Digital Assets in four funding rounds.

Read Bitcoin’s [BTC] Price Prediction 2023-2024

The venture arm made its first investment in August last year, when Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at a high of $50,505. In this investment round, Alameda had poured in $100 million. The rest of the investments took place this year, with $550 million invested in January. The venture arm poured in an additional $250 million the very next month.

Meanwhile, the last investment was in April, with the firm adding $250 million to Genesis Digital’s balance sheets. This was in the same timeline as when Bitcoin’s price was on its way downhill. Notably, the amount of money invested in Genesis makes it Alameda’s biggest investment.

Alameda stepped in to rescue FTX

Interestingly, Alameda’s Bitcoin mining investment revelation comes hours after it was reported that the venture arm had stepped in to rescue FTX last year. The venture firm provided FTX with an aid of up to $1 billion. This was after the exchange’s system failed to guard it against a customer’s leverage on a token.

The token in highlight is MobileCoin, which was used as a means of payment on the Signal messaging app. According to a report by Financial Times, a trader opened high leverage against the token when its price rose. The token, at the time, went from trading at a low of $6 to nearly a high of $70, and back down again in a very short duration. This cost the exchange from anywhere between hundreds of millions of dollars to $1 billion.

Former FTX employee moves on to a new venture

Subsequently, FTX US’ former president – Brett Harrison – seems to have moved on to start his own venture, while the fate of many other executives remains unknown. According to a report by The Information, Harrison is looking to raise funds to build a crypto trading software for big investors.

The former FTX executive is looking to raise nearly $6 million for a valuation of $60 million. This, however, is subject to change, as per the report.

Notably, Harrison stepped down from his role at the firm nearly a month before the famous collapse of FTX and Alameda. The former executive was, however, set to take on the role of an advisor in the coming months. In a Twitter thread addressing the matter, Harrison stated,

“I can’t wait to share more about what I’m doing next. Until then, I’ll be assisting Sam and the team with this transition to ensure FTX ends the year with all its characteristic momentum.”