FTX grew 1,000% before the market crash this year.
The cryptocurrency exchange’s revenue soared from $89 million to $1.02 billion in 2021, according to documents reportedly seen by CNBC.
Operating income – a US measure of profitability – was $272m, up from $14m a year earlier.
Led by Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX is based in the Bahamas but expanded worldwide at a rapid pace in 2021 through a series of acquisitions.
The US arm of the company received a cease-and-desist warning on Friday from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation over ‘misleading’ statements around the insurance of its products.
Cryptocurrencies stored with brokerages are not protected by the US government, unlike cash deposited with banks.
Four other crypto companies – Cryptonews.com, Cryptosec.info, SmartAsset.com and FDICCrypto.com – were also targeted with letters from the FDIC.
“Based upon evidence collected by the FDIC, each of these companies made false representations – including on their websites and social media accounts – stating or suggesting that certain crypto-related products are FDIC-insured or that stocks held in brokerage accounts are FDIC-insured,” the regulator said.
The FDIC said the companies must “take immediate corrective action to address these false or misleading statements”.
SmartAsset and CryptoSec had identified FTX as an ‘FDIC-insured cryptocurrency exchange’.