Recently, documents released by the Financial Times (FT) revealed that FTX Ventures has invested $5.4 billion in 500 different companies and projects. Of particular interest is the investment of $25 million in 80 Acres Farms, a vertical farming company based in Ohio. In August 2021, 80 Acres Farms raised $160 million in a Series B financing round, backed by General Atlantic and Siemens Financial Services.
Discovering the Connection between FTX, Ryan Salame, and Two Vertically-Oriented Agribusinesses
The Financial Times (FT) recently published documents that showed the investment portfolio at FTX. The staggering figure is $5.4 billion, and it allows FTX to invest in hundreds of companies, not all of which are related to blockchain or cryptocurrency.
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Documents Published By the Financial Times (FT) signifies that FTX Ventures 25 million invested into company 80 Acres Farms. It is not possible to pinpoint the exact date when this reverse occurred. In August 2021, 80 Acres Farms Raised $160 Million in an a Series Round B financing as a result of General Atlantic And Joined by Siemens Financial Services. One of these investments was in 80 Acres Farms, a vertical produce supplier to supermarkets such as The Fresh Market, Kroger?, and Whole Foods. The 80 Acres Farms was founded by co-founders and recently appeared in a BBC segment titled “Follow the Food.”
You might be wondering why a cryptocurrency company, and specifically FTX, would be interested in a company that grows hydroponics in stackable layers. Although it is not clear why this is so, it is well-known that Ryan Salame, FTX’s co-CEO of Digital Markets, visited the farm in January 2022.
As the government works to move The Bahamas towards a green economy, Prime Minister Davis, Honorable Clay Sweeting, and I were able to visit the 70K sqft. 80 Acres Farms.
Read the Prime Minister’s comments here: https://t.co/eST1lnLcQo 1/2 pic.twitter.com/SrskJoI6gl
— Office of the Prime Minister The Bahamas (@opmthebahamas) January 25, 2022
According to The Tribune, Salame and Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Davis visited 80 Acres Farms with Bahamian Agriculture Minister Clay Sweeting. The Tribune Business Editor Neil Hartnell said the tour of the farm would be a good example for others. Coincidentally, a Bahamian hydroponic company, Eeden Farms, is located on Gladstone Road in Nassau.
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3D mockup of Eeden Acres, shared on the company’s Facebook page. At the time of this article’s publication (December 8, 2022), Eeden’s website does not have security certificates, and the company’s The Tribune reported that the land is to be used as a farm. “It is available.” Last year, FTX relocated its headquarters from Hong Kong to The Bahamas in September 2021. Documents from The Financial Times published this week showed that 80 Acres obtained $25 million from FTX Ventures.
Furthermore, Salame, according to some reports, provided $22 million to Republicans, as data from Opensecrets.org reveals that the 2022 midterm elections are expected to be successful. A native of Sandisfield Massachusetts, Salame was well known for his substantial spending. He owned at least six properties and four restaurants, according to The Berkshire Eagle.
It is unclear what kind of relationship FTX Ventures had with Salame and 80 Acres, but it appears that Salame was a crucial part of the Eeden Acres 80 Acres projects. The website for Eeden Farms is currently unavailable and the company’s social media accounts have not been updated in some time. The last post on the company’s Instagram page was in June 2021, while the last posts on the company’s Facebook page were published the same month. The most recent tweet from Eeden was in February 2022.
On the company’s Facebook page, which is titled Eeden Acres, 3D images of a completely solar-paneled roofed building can be seen. Lincoln Deal, co-founder of Eeden, recently discussed “disruptive changes in the agricultural industry” in an interview with Mario Nawfal’s Twitter Spaces Team. FTX cofounder Sam Bankman-Fried recognized withdrawals from Bahamian citizens twice, which occurred before FTX crashed.
In two parts of an interview with Tiffany Fong (here and here), SBF explained that FTX executives rushed the withdrawals from The Bahamas because they did not want to be stuck on an island with angry people.
The University of The Bahamas and FTX’s financial issues began the day before. During an interview with Mario Nawfal’s Twitter Spaces Team, FTX cofounder Sam Bankman-Fried recognized withdrawals from Bahamian residents, which happened before FTX crashed completely.
What do you think of the connections between FTX, FTX Ventures, Ryan Salame, Eeden Farms 80 Acres Farms? Why would the head of a crypto-exchange visit a vertical farm in Ohio with the Prime Minister of the Bahamas? We would love to hear your thoughts on the topic. Leave your comments below.