Sam Bankman - Fried , the founder of FTX and former CEO , spoke with New York Times and CNBC master of ceremonies Andrew Ross Sorkin in a extremely anticipated interview onWednesdaythat had been reserve before FTX implode . And it was a master family in spin .
Bankman - Fried , more unremarkably known as SBF , bring together virtually from the Bahamas and spend the audience repeatedly assume the carriage and cadence of a 15 - yr - old kid caught with a baggie of locoweed in his air sock draftsman . But SBF was n’t caught smoking locoweed by his parents and he ’s not a stripling . The 30 - year - old graduate of MIT lost billions of dollars in substance abuser deposits — the life sentence preservation of regular multitude , in some cases — on his crypto trading platform FTX , a company that had a rating of $ 32 billion before declare bankruptcy on November 11 .
SBF has pass the retiring three years building a personal brand that mixes the put - back , hoodie - wearing techie of early - Facebook Mark Zuckerberg with the unmarried - minded focus of a number cruncher like Michael Burry , play by Christian Bale in 2012 ’s The Big Short . Toss in some leaden economic consumption of prescription uppers and you ’ve got a son genius who just wants to make the world a well place with his witching internet money .
Screenshot: New York Times / YouTube
That image of the vivid fry was touted onmagazine covers , during TV interviews , and at group discussion where SBF waswearing shorts and a tonne - shirtwhile pose next to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and former U.S. Chief Executive Bill Clinton . And it allow SBF to create an imperium ramp up on fake money , in the shape of not just bitcoin and ethereum but two cryptocurrencies he make himself call FTT and Serum . SBF used this junk as collateral to make large bets with his hedging fund Alameda Research , and it was those bad bet , made by get customer deposits through a technique known in the legal professing as “ impostor , ” which finally led to the company ’s downfall in a stunningly little menstruation of clip . ( SBF claimed Wednesday that he “ never knowingly co - mingled funds , ” referring to the use of FTX customer deposits to fund Alameda Research ’s investments . )
Sorkin got in plenty of questions during the 1 hour and 13 minute conversation , but SBF was almost always able to make it vocalise like he was just making dependable fault . Sorkin involve SBF about the co - mingling of store between FTX and Alameda Research , an entity he technically was n’t hypothecate to have any control over . But even some of Sorkin ’s question were infantilizing and allowed spectator to empathize with the idea that SBF was little more than a child who got in over his head .
“ When you translate the stories , it sound like a bunch of kids who were on Adderall having a sleepover political party , ” Sorkin said to laughter from theaudience in New York .
“ Look , I screwed up . I was CEO . I was the CEO of FTX . And , I say this again and again , that … . that means I had a responsibility , that I was responsible for at last for us doing the proper things . I mean , we did n’t . We messed up big , ” Bankman - Fried read , his capitulum hang low .
And that flexible tone was part of a constant refrain that , in truth , landed like a weaponized apology . SBF would take responsibility , or at least look like he was taking obligation , and say that he merely messed up by not managing danger properly . And it all came across as something we could sympathize with . Sorkin would then go on to necessitate about SBF ’s parents , both legal philosophy professors at Stanford .
“ Your parent are law professors . What did you tell them when all of this happened ? ” Sorkin asks at one point .
Putting aside the undefined diction in a line like “ when all of this happened , ” for a second , who give a shit what SBF ’s parents imagine of the situation ? try out to guess literally any other individual accused of criminal - level impropriety with customer funds getting asked a softball question more in line with junior mellow gossip . To his credit , Sorkin also postulate about the veridical estate purchases in the Bahamas that SBF ’s parents were apparently signatories on — a motion SBF did n’t provide a very clear answer , much like the rest of the audience . But SBF was clear granted margin in a fashion that ’s hard to imagine someone like Elizabeth Holmes get in the backwash of the fraud at Theranos , to say nothing of a Ponzi scheme character like Bernie Madoff .
Even SBF ’s ingeminate crapulence of some canned beverage helped created the subtle image that this was a juvenile person who could n’t really be held responsible for his natural process . And it ’s hard not to envisage that feeling was deliberate , much like the rest of his slovenly theatrical role .
The interview even cease with a round of golf of applause for SBF from the audience — hoi polloi who reportedly give over $ 2,000 a head for the fortune to attend the conference in New York . It was a very weird second from the audience , perhaps only exceeded when they all laughed at SBF articulate he “ had a risky calendar month , ” as though it was a line from a situation comedy .
perchance it was all best summed up by Kevin O’Leary , a former yield spokesman for FTX who also lost money during the implosion of FTX . O’Leary quote - twitch Bill Ackman on Wednesday , who said he believed SBF was “ tell the truth ” after watching the interview , suggesting perhaps that it was all a bunch of honest error .
“ I lose millions as an investor in @FTX and got sandblasted as a paid spokesperson for the firm but after listening to that interview I ’m in the @BillAckman camp about the kid ! ” O’Learytweeted .
The tike . The 30 - year - sure-enough Kyd .
George Stephanopoulos of ABC News latterly flew down to conduct his own interview with SBF in the Bahamas , which is expected to air on Good Morning America onThursday morning . Here ’s hoping against hope that old George — who pronounce he “ does n’t understand crypto”—will squeeze some factual tidings out of his consultation . Because while Sorkin ’s interview on Wednesday may supply some opportunity for eagle - eyed lawyer hop to fascinate SBF in some contradiction , it was clear an attempt by SBF to wangle the narration by appear to offer attrition for the collapse of FTX , while acquire away with a gentle smack on the wrist because he ’s just a young 30 - yr - old boy , after all . The idiotic son ace .
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