FILE PHOTO: Representations of cryptocurrencies are seen in front of displayed decreasing stock graph in this illustration taken November 10, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
(Reuters) -FTX's new chief executive officer and attorneys this week met with Justice Department officials as the investigation into the crypto firm's collapse continues, a source familiar with the meeting said.
FTX Trading's new CEO John J. Ray III and lawyers for the crypto firm met in person with prosecutors from the Manhattan U.S. attorney's office, which has been leading a probe into the firm's sudden collapse, the source said. Bloomberg News first reported the meeting.
A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment.
Last month, FTX filed for U.S. bankruptcy protection and its founder Sam Bankman-Fried resigned as chief executive, after rival exchange Binance walked away from a proposed acquisition. Ray, who was tapped to oversee the firm's restructuring, has said the company is working with law enforcement and regulators.
FTX is cooperating with the government's investigations and may have further meetings with prosecutors, said the source, who declined to be named as the meeting and the investigation are not public.
The implosion of FTX has rippled across the industry, hobbling liquidity at firms with exposure to what was once one of the world's biggest crypto exchanges, and prompting investigations by regulators in several countries.
Spokespeople for FTX and Sullivan and Cromwell LLP, the firm representing FTX, did not respond immediately to Reuters' requests for comment.
(Reporting by Chris Prentice and in New York, Manya Saini in Bengaluru and Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips, Shounak Dasgupta and Daniel Wallis)
