Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX, stated in an interview published by Vox that he regretted his decision to file for bankruptcy and criticised regulators. The basis of the interview, an exchange of messages on the same platform, was not intended to be made public, Bankman-Fried stated later on Twitter.
The bankrupt company, which appointed five new independent directors at each of its major affiliated companies, including Alameda research, has filed for bankruptcy in the past week. The five new directors and newly appointed CEO John J. Ray are attempting to navigate the bankruptcy procedure. Bankman-Fried stated in the interview that those in charge of FTX’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy process were “trying to burn it all down out of shame” and that he had two weeks to raise $8 billion to save the company.
“Raising the funds is essentially all that matters to me for the rest of my life,” he said. “Chapter 11” was his biggest mistake. If he hadn’t done it, withdrawals would have begun in a month with customers fully compensated.
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He added that regulators make everything worse. He stated, “They do not protect customers at all.” Ray stated in a tweet that Bankman-Fried did not represent FTX, FTX US, or Alameda Research in any capacity and did not speak on their behalf.
FTX has stated that it is in communication with dozens of global regulators, including the United States. Commission of Securities and Exchanges. After Vox published the interview, Bankman-Fried stated that some of his comments were “thoughtless or overly strong” and that he was venting about a matter that was not intended for public consumption.
They have an impossible job: to regulate entire industries that grow faster than their mandate permits,” he wrote on Twitter, adding that the message exchange with Vox’s reporter was “not intended to be public.” A Vox spokesperson stated that all communication with Vox reporters was on the record unless the subject and reporter agreed otherwise.
“Our reporter is clearly identified as such in her Twitter bio, has previously interviewed Mr. Bankman-Fried, and in this instance, as an additional courtesy, notified him via email that she planned to write about their on-the-record exchange. He did not object in his reply prior to publication.”
