FTX estate misses out on $3B Cursor stake value after $200K sale in 2023

The FTX estate sold its Cursor stake for $200K in 2023, now worth $3B after a SpaceX-linked valuation surge, raising questions about bankruptcy asset sales.

The FTX bankruptcy estate sold a 5% stake in AI coding startup Cursor for $200,000 in April 2023, missing out on roughly $3 billion after the company was valued at $60 billion in a SpaceX-linked deal this week.

On Wednesday, SpaceX said it has secured the right to acquire Cursor later this year at a $60 billion valuation, or alternatively pay a $10 billion breakup fee if the transaction does not proceed.

That valuation sharply revalues FTX’s earlier position in the company, which traces back to April 2022 when Alameda Research, a quantitative trading firm also founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, invested $200,000 in Anysphere, the startup behind Cursor. The investment reportedly secured about a 5% equity stake at a $4 million valuation.

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