Stanford University Returning FTX's Multi-Million Dollar Donation

Stanford University has decided to return all funds donated by the crypto trading company FTX and its related entities. 

Between November 2021 and May 2022, Stanford University received a substantial sum of $5.5 million from entities related to FTX. These funds were primarily directed towards pandemic-related prevention and research. The decision to return the funds arises from ongoing legal issues surrounding FTX and its founder. With the university's reputation at stake, the return of these funds is seen as an ethical stand, ensuring the institution's integrity remains uncompromised.

FTX's administrators have taken legal action against Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, parents of Sam Bankman-Fried. Both parents, who have been Stanford law professors for over three decades, are accused of benefiting from their son's alleged fraudulent activities. Court filings suggest that the parents received lavish gifts, including a $16.4 million property in the Bahamas and cash gifts amounting to at least $10 million.

Following the collapse of FTX, the company has been working tirelessly to recover its losses. As of June 2023, FTX managed to recover $7 billion in assets. The company also received court approval for $100 million in weekly asset liquidations, aiming to secure liquidity and repay its customers.

Stanford isn't the only institution distancing itself from FTX. In June 2023, the Metropolitan Museum of Art also announced plans to return $500,000 received from FTX. Stanford's spokesperson, in a statement to Bloomberg, emphasized the university's commitment to returning the funds in their entirety. The funds, which were received from the FTX Foundation and other FTX-related companies, were primarily earmarked for pandemic-related research.

“We have been in discussions with attorneys for the FTX debtors to recover these gifts and we will be returning the funds in their entirety.”

Adding another layer to this complex situation is the fact that both of Sam Bankman-Fried's parents, Alan Bankman and Barbara Fried, have been associated with Stanford Law School as legal scholars.