FTX customers ask bankruptcy court to keep their names secret

The names and amounts of debt held by each creditor, including individual clients, are typically disclosed by bankrupt companies.

But a group of non-American FTX customers who claim to be owed $1.9 billion told US Bankruptcy Judge John Dorsey that this case is unique in a late-night court filing on Wednesday.

Additionally, they cautioned that disclosure might jeopardize FTX's attempts to sell off portions of its company, which it wants to do to increase the amount of money available for creditors.

Because cryptocurrency is hard to trace and has fewer security measures in place to protect the assets, the group claimed that cryptocurrency holders are especially vulnerable to fraud and theft.

Sam Bankman-former Fried's company, FTX, is also looking for a waiver that would protect the anonymity of its clients.

The bankruptcy watchdog of the U.S. Department of Justice, as well as various media outlets, including the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, have opposed that request.

A problem with customer privacy has arisen in other cryptocurrency-related bankruptcies.

For instance, the bankruptcy judge for Celsius Network ruled in October that while customer names had to be disclosed, addresses and email addresses could be kept private.

In order to preserve Cred's ability to "market and sell that list" as part of a potential sale of the company, Dorsey allowed the customer list of the cryptocurrency lender to remain secret two years ago.

A hearing regarding customer privacy will be held for Dorsey on January 11 in Wilmington, Delaware. He has requested input from a committee made up of all FTX creditors.

A request for comment on Thursday was not immediately answered by attorneys for the official FTX creditors committee.