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Odaily Translator | Nian Yin Si Tang
Summary:
Summary:
- FTX founder SBF's estimated net worth has reportedly dropped to almost nothing, from $16 billion earlier this week.
- The cryptocurrency exchange faced a liquidity crunch and was accused of misusing customer funds to cover trading losses.
As FTX crashed this week, founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) quickly went from icon and so-called "savior" of the cryptocurrency industry to a disgraced figure who could be paid for dozens of dollars worth of money. responsible for billions of dollars in customer losses. Apparently he also lost all his fortune in the process.Bloomberg Billionaires Index(Billionaires Index) reports that inFTX files for bankruptcy
The value of SBF's assets has dropped from $16 billion earlier this week to near zero following the news. Most of his assets are tied to his companies, Bloomberg estimates, though he may have others not tracked by Bloomberg.
FTX is believed to have a multi-billion dollar hole in its balance sheet. The exchange is accused of using client funds to cover losses at Alameda Research, a trading arm owned by SBF. FTX suffered a liquidity crunch this week as users withdrew their funds, causing the value of its FTT token to plummet. SBF resigned as CEO yesterday, alongside the announcement of its bankruptcy filing.
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Rise of the SBF Crypto Empire
SBF founded Alameda in 2017 and made huge profits from arbitrage trading strategies before founding FTX in 2019. His popularity began to rise in 2020, as SBF was dubbed the "crypto savior" by the industry for helping the decentralized exchange after the founder of SushiSwap left the community.FTX grew gradually in early 2021, but its popularity and transaction volume accelerated significantly as the company began courting the mainstream through sports and celebrity leagues. In just a few months, FTX has teamed up with the Miami HeatSigned a 19-year, $135 million sponsorship deal, and with e-sports club Team SoloMid。
Signed a 10-year, $210 million sponsorship deal
Along the way, the company has raised a ton of cash from investors: a $1 billion Series B round in July 2021, another $421 million in October 2021, and another $400 million in January. . This does not include raising funds for FTX US, a separate exchange serving US users. FTX last raised funding in January this year, valuing it at $32 billion.
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under the spotlight
SBF's net worth and fame skyrocketed, and before long his fortune was estimated at $26 billion. To celebrate his success, he made an appearance with Brady and model Gisele Bündchen (Brady's wife at the time) at FTX's own Crypto Bahamas conference, along with Bill Clinton and Tony... Blair (Tony Blair) and others also attended the meeting.SBF subscribes to the theory of effective altruism, essentially trying to make as much money as possible through FTX and cryptocurrency trading, and eventually donate it all for the good of the world. He also said he may spend money on political donations in the run-up to the 2024 presidential election.Spend up to $1 billion,but。
eventually retracted the claim
Earlier this year, when the cryptocurrency industry was struggling, he stepped in very publicly, "bailing out" companies such as Voyager Digital and BlockFi that were facing bankruptcy due to the Terra debacle.
In August, SBF said on Decrypt's podcast that the bailout of Voyager Digital may have "lost $70 million for nothing." He didn't really care about it, and he didn't seem to expect the funds to be returned. “Essentially, we knew we might never see that $70 million again,” he told Decrypt.
These companies don't have much recourse now, and their executives may now hope that others will help.At the time, the SBF's indifference might have raised red flags for some. But SBF is worth billions of dollars, and put the $750 million he gave to Voyager and BlockFi earlier this year.emergency assistance
"I do feel that we have a responsibility to seriously consider stepping in to prevent the industry crisis from spreading further, even if it is a loss to ourselves." SBF previously told the US National Public Radio (NPR), "Even if we are not the cause The people who do all of this, are not involved. I think it’s healthy for the ecosystem, and what I want to do is help the industry grow and prosper.”
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collapse overnight
However, there were reports that behind the scenes, he was improperly using FTX client funds to stem Alameda's losses. However, when FTX clients began withdrawing assets en masse and FTT collapsed, the company found itself in a liquidity crisis. Rival Binance had originally intended to step in to rescue the market, but abandoned the plan after seeing the scale of the crisis.
Client assets, potentially worth billions of dollars, are now largely trapped within exchanges, likely to be subject to bankruptcy proceedings for a long time to come. On top of that, many companies, including BlockFi, are disclosing their exposure to FTX, spreading the kind of crypto contagion that SBF was previously designed to prevent.
also,also,According to Reuters
At least $1 billion in client funds disappeared from FTX, according to two people familiar with the matter. SBF has secretly transferred $10 billion in client funds from FTX to Alameda Research, according to people familiar with the matter. A person familiar with the matter estimated the unaccounted for at about $1.7 billion. Another person familiar with the matter said the amount was between $1 billion and $2 billion.
An investigation by FTX's legal and financial team found that SBF implemented what it called a "back door" into FTX's accounting system, which was built using custom software. This "back door" allowed SBF to perform work that could alter the company's financial situation without alerting others, including outside accountants. The setup, which meant moving $10 billion to Alameda, did not raise any internal compliance or accounting risk red flags at FTX, they said. Reuters asked SBF whether the news was true, and he denied that a "back door" was used.
