On Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen known as FTX’s collapse a “Lehman second” for the cryptocurrency business, referring to the chapter of the Wall Road financial institution Lehman Brothers at first of the 2008 monetary disaster. She indicated that she considered cryptocurrencies with skepticism, calling them “very dangerous property” and including that she was grateful that their current volatility had not spilled over into the mainstream banking sector.
For somebody dealing with attainable felony prices, Mr. Bankman-Fried has been surprisingly prepared to talk publicly. Because the disaster unfolded in early November, he posted a collection of apologetic tweets — statements his legal professionals later chastised him for making, he has mentioned. Two days after FTX’s chapter submitting this month, he spoke with The Occasions for greater than an hour about how he had managed his enterprise empire whereas dodging questions on his firm’s use of buyer cash.
On the video stream on the DealBook convention, Mr. Bankman-Fried, sporting a black T-shirt, fidgeted at occasions, as he typically does throughout interviews. He mentioned he was talking publicly towards the recommendation of his legal professionals, who’ve instructed him to maintain quiet and “recede right into a gap.” He mentioned he had determined to ignore their recommendation.
“That’s not who I’m,” he mentioned. “I’ve an obligation to speak.”
The connection between FTX and Alameda had lengthy been a supply of criticism. Alameda traded closely on the FTX platform, that means it generally benefited when FTX’s different clients misplaced cash, elevating a battle of curiosity. Mr. Bankman-Fried lived with Ms. Ellison in a penthouse within the Bahamas, and at occasions the 2 had been romantically concerned.
Mr. Bankman-Fried claimed he was “nervous a couple of battle of curiosity” with Alameda, and distanced himself from its operations partly for that purpose.
In addressing the influence of the corporate’s collapse on his personal future, he was understated. “I’ve had a foul month,” he mentioned at one level, to laughter from the viewers.
Mr. Bankman-Fried additionally mentioned the disaster had lowered his internet value to about $100,000. “I don’t have any hidden funds,” he mentioned. “I put all the things I had into FTX.”