Following SpaceX's agreement to acquire Cursor at a $60 billion valuation, the 5% stake FTX's estate sold for $200,000 in April 2023 is now worth approximately $3 billion. This significant increase in value comes as SpaceX plans to either acquire Cursor for $60 billion or pay a $10 billion breakup fee, pending its planned initial public offering. The deal is part of Elon Musk's efforts to close the gap with competitors in AI coding tools. The crypto aspect of the deal lies in Alameda Research's initial $200,000 investment in Anysphere, the company behind Cursor, in April 2022.
After FTX's collapse, the court-appointed estate sold the stake for the same $200,000, resulting in a missed recovery of roughly $3 billion. This outcome has sparked debate, particularly from Sam Bankman-Fried, who argues that FTX's estate destroyed billions in value by liquidating assets too quickly during the bankruptcy. The timing of the sale has raised questions about the bankruptcy administration's handling of assets, with Bankman-Fried suggesting that customers could have received more if the process had held positions instead of selling them. The Cursor stake's valuation increase is a prime example of the kind of value he claims the estate destroyed through forced selling.