Hong Kong: Losses from affiliated trading unit 10kM Trading have hit Hong Kong cryptocurrency exchange Atomic Asset Exchange (AAX), according to a former employee with knowledge of the situation.
which this month stopped accepting withdrawals and shut down its social media accounts, at a time when markets are still reeling from the global collapse of FTX following losses at Alameda Research.
The employee, who recently left the company and wished to remain anonymous as he is not authorized to speak to the media, claimed that market maker 10kM Trading, which AAX founded in 2019, had developed risk management techniques and Trading strategies used that exchange issues.
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Although FTX, where the company kept some of its funds, has been linked to AX's problems, the former employee claims that problems at the Hong Kong-based company began even before FTX filed for bankruptcy in the US on November 11. .
His claims could not be independently verified as 10KM Trading did not immediately respond to a request for comment made via its website on Tuesday. AAX was unable to be reached. The company's main office at AIA Tower in North Point was closed when a visitor arrived on Tuesday afternoon.
After freezing withdrawals this month and deleting its social media accounts, AAX has effectively shut down, isolating the team. The Post previously reported that angry investors had created several chat groups on Telegram called "AAX Users Defending Rights," each attracting more than 1,000 users demanding to know the whereabouts of the AAX team.
According to a recent statement by AAX on November 21, all futures positions on its platform, including bonus futures positions, will be automatically liquidated.
Although the exact relationship between 10kM and AAX is unknown, both companies are located in the AIA Central Office Tower at the same address as Atom International Technology, another related limited liability company.
According to the receptionist, the coworking space there is used by 10kM. 10kM refers to itself on its website as a “trusted liquidity partner for token issuers”.
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The relationship between 10kM and AAX may have come under scrutiny, resulting in FTX's relationship with sister derivatives trading company Alameda Research leading to the eventual dissolution and bankruptcy of both companies. Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder, has admitted that FTX customers' funds were transferred to Alameda. According to a Reuters report, between US$1 billion and US$2 billion in funds belonging to FTX customers have gone missing.
AIX's other main offices are located in the AIA Tower on Fortress Hill. The building was empty on Tuesday, the day of my visit. The office is listed in the building directory as Cumulate Limited, and Bernhardt Casselin, a Dutchman, is listed as the corporate director of Cumulate Limited in Hong Kong.
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Ben Casselin, AAX's former head of research and strategy, announced his departure from the organization on Monday on Twitter. He wrote, "The way things are handled [at AAX] lacks empathy and is highly opaque." "The brand is no longer there, and the confidence is lost."