Temasek is Disappointed with Investments in FTX, Says Chairman

• Temasek’s Chairman commented that the company is disappointed with the outcome of its investment in FTX.
• Chairman Lim Boon Heng added that the company’s dealings with FTX have had a negative impact on its reputation.
• Temasek reduced compensation for the investment team who had been responsible for the decisions on investment in FTX.

Lim Boon Heng, the Chairman of the Singapore-based global investment company Temasek Holdings commented that the firm is “disappointed” with the outcome of its investment in the beleaguered crypto exchange FTX and its “negative impact” on the company’s reputation.

According to a statement released by Temasek on May 29, the company officials including the “investment team and senior management,” who had been responsible for the ultimate decisions on investment, took “collective accountability.” Though there was no misconduct by the investment team in their procedures, the company reduced compensation for the team; the report hasn’t revealed the actual amount of reduction.

Temasek also declared that the company would continue its venture of investments in new companies, stating:

We believe that we have to invest in new sectors and emerging technologies to understand how these areas may impact the business and financial models of our existing portfolio and whether they would be drivers of future value in an ever-changing world.

The reports revealed that a total amount of $275 million was invested in FTX. Temasek invested $210 million initially and later $65 million in the crypto exchange between October 2021 and January 2022, prior to the arrest of FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried.

A similar statement, as opined by Heng, was put forward by Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, during a parliament meeting in November 2022, when he commented that the FTX debacle has caused “reputational damage” for Temasek, in addition to the financial losses.

As per recent reports, the total investment that Temasek has lost to FTX constitutes only 0.09% of the company’s portfolio value which is more than $293 billion at the time of FTX’s collapse.

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