Following SpaceX's agreement to acquire 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 substantial increase in value is a result of SpaceX's planned acquisition, which is part of Elon Musk's strategy to enhance his company's AI coding capabilities.
The deal has brought attention to the crypto aspect, as Alameda Research, founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, initially invested $200,000 in Anysphere, the company behind Cursor, in April 2022. When FTX collapsed, the court-appointed estate sold the stake for the same amount, resulting in a significant loss of potential revenue for the creditors. This incident has sparked debate, particularly given Bankman-Fried's claims that the estate's rapid liquidation of assets led to the destruction of billions of dollars in value. The timing of the sale has also raised questions, as it has been argued that holding onto the assets could have resulted in a more substantial recovery for the creditors.
The situation has been further complicated by the fact that FTX customers have been repaid in full, but did not receive the potential upside from the assets, including the substantial increase in value of the Cursor stake.