FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022 in the wake of claims that it misused and lost billions of dollars worth of customers' crypto deposits.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said says they make up nearly half of cases recorded.

The former prime minister also warns about the financial risks posed by the rapidly growing 'buy now, pay later' trend in the country.

Several companies in the crypto industry have tumbled into bankruptcy over the past year, felled by a drop in asset prices, renewed regulatory scrutiny, and in the case of FTX, criminal charges.

Oita prefecture, home to Japan's largest number of hot springs, partnered with Virgin Orbit in 2020 to create its first Asian spaceport at Oita Airport using a Boeing 747 for horizontal rocket launches.

The California-based company lodged the filing after announcing the layoff of roughly 85% of its 750 employees last week.

Azalina Othman Said says the numbers are worrying as those declared bankrupt would need government assistance to begin afresh.

Andy Dietderich, an attorney for FTX says the US$5 billion recovered does not include assets seized by the Securities Commission of the Bahamas, where the company was headquartered and Bankman-Fried resided.

The island nation's 22 million people have endured months of galloping inflation and lengthy power cuts after the government ran out of foreign currency to import vital goods.

It says the objective of its rehabilitation process is to revamp the company's administration process and restructure its debts and that operations will continue as usual.

The island nation is in the grip of its worst economic crisis since independence in 1948, with severe shortages of essential goods and regular blackouts causing widespread hardship.

Tengku Zafrul Aziz says as a former finance minister himself, Anwar should be aware of the role of shareholders.