Following SpaceX's agreement to acquire AI coding startup Cursor at a $60 billion valuation, it has been revealed that a 5% stake in the company, sold by FTX's bankruptcy estate for $200,000 in April 2023, would now be worth approximately $3 billion. This significant increase in value has brought attention to the crypto aspect of the deal, as Alameda Research, founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, had initially invested $200,000 in Anysphere, the company behind Cursor, in April 2022. The investment represented a 5% stake in the company at a $4 million valuation. After FTX's collapse, the court-appointed estate sold the Cursor stake for the same $200,000, resulting in a missed opportunity for the estate's creditors.
The timing of the sale has been criticized, particularly by Bankman-Fried, who is currently serving a 25-year federal sentence and has argued that the estate's quick liquidation of assets destroyed billions in value. The Cursor stake's valuation increase represents a 15,000x return, which could have been realized by the creditors if the estate had held onto the assets.
The case has sparked debate about the handling of FTX's assets during the bankruptcy process and the potential for customers to have received more than their initial investments if the assets had been held onto.