Sam Bankman-Fried Breaks Silence After FTX Collapse

Ex-FTX boss, Sam Bankman-Fried, has made his first public appearance since the recent collapse of crypto exchange FTX. Having once been valued at $32 billion, the FTX fiasco has sent shockwaves through the web3 community with many companies and individuals still reeling from the fallout. SBF says he believes FTX US to be solvent and that American investors will eventually receive their money, although he provided no evidence to support this statement.

During his interview with the New York Times, Bankman-Fried said that he was going against his lawyers advice in speaking publicly and denied having moved any personal money out of FTX himself. When asked about what happened, he stated that he had "made a lot of mistakes" and that he "didn't ever try to commit fraud." Bankman-Fried gave little detailed information when questioned on the movement of money between FTX and other companies, including Alameda Research, the trading firm he owned.

According to the BBC, as recently as October this year Bankman-Fried's net worth was valued at around $15 billion, though he now claims he has "close to nothing" and that he underestimated the amount needed to cover the withdrawals of FTX customers. After declaring bankruptcy on November 11, recent court filings tell us that FTX currently owes its largest creditors approximately $3.1 billion.