FTX says IRS demand for $24 billion in unpaid taxes is delaying recovery of user funds

On December 12th, FTX's lawyers stated in new documents submitted to the Delaware bankruptcy court that the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) should verify its claim against FTX and explain how it calculated the alleged unpaid taxes. This is the latest step in the months-long dispute between the IRS and FTX's bankruptcy assets, with the focus of the controversy being how much this bankrupt trading platform and its affiliated companies owe the government in unpaid taxes.

Although FTX claims it owes nothing to the IRS, the tax agency hopes to obtain as much as $24 billion, which is several times the amount of assets currently owned, in order to repay creditors' debts.

Lawyers wrote in the documents that FTX has never distributed dividends or profits during its three-year lifespan, and "has never earned any amount sufficient to support the IRS's claim for $24 billion in taxes." Instead, they added, FTX has lost a lot of money.