At the peak of his dazzling career, Sam Bankman-Fried, popularly called SBF, was worth $26 billion (over A Rs 2 lakh crore). The 30-year-old American entrepreneur, known for his trademark mop of hair and dishevelled looks, had achieved an iconic status in the world of cryptocurrency, becoming its champion in a world ever looking for new ways of wealth creation. He lobbied and donated to prominent government figures, rescued failing crypto projects, and pledged much to charity. The success story looked too big to fail until it eventually did. On November 11, Bankman-Fried's Bahamas-based firm FTX, the world's third-largest cryptocurrency exchange with over a million investors, filed for bankruptcy protection, sending the prices of cryptocurrencies crashing on exchanges worldwide. Overall crypto market capitalisation or the total value of cryptocurrencies traded fell from more than $1 trillion (around Rs 82 lakh crore) on November 6 to $803.6 billion (around Rs 66 lakh crore) on November 21. This was also way off the $3 trillion (around Rs 245 lakh crore) valuation cryptos saw last November when the industry was at its peak. Following his firm's collapse, Bankman-Fried's wealth shrank to nearly $1 billion (around Rs 8,100 crore), even as he faced a series of lawsuits and had to give up his position.
The collapse of FTX has been the biggest so far in a series of recent jolts to the crypto business, adding to the commotion in a sector that has faced brickbats for its absence of regulation or any underlying asset value, making millions of investors susceptible to market vagaries. Coming on the back of a crash in crypto valuations following the Ukraine war that has led to fears of a recession in several parts of the world, the latest event has kicked up more questions about the future of the crypto business.
Denne historien er fra December 05, 2022-utgaven av India Today.
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Denne historien er fra December 05, 2022-utgaven av India Today.
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Shuttle Star
Ashwini Ponnappa was the only Indian to compete in the inaugural edition of BDMNTN-XL, a new international badminton tourney with a new format, held in Indonesia
There's No Planet B
All Living Things-Environmental Film Festival (ALT EFF) returns with 72 films to be screened across multiple locations from Nov. 22 to Dec. 8
AMPED UP AND UNPLUGGED
THE MAHINDRA INDEPENDENCE ROCK FESTIVAL PROMISES AN INTERESTING LINE-UP OF OLD AND NEW ACTS, CEMENTING ITS REPUTATION AS THE 'WOODSTOCK OF INDIA'
A Musical Marriage
Faezeh Jalali has returned to the Prithvi Theatre Festival with Runaway Brides, a hilarious musical about Indian weddings
THE PRICE OF FREEDOM
Nikhil Advani’s adaptation of Freedom at Midnight details our tumultuous transition to an independent nation
Family Saga
RAMONA SEN's The Lady on the Horse doesn't lose its pace while narrating the story of five generations of a family in Calcutta
THE ETERNAL MOTHER
Prayaag Akbar's new novel delves into the complexities of contemporary India
TURNING A NEW LEAF
Since the turn of the century, we have lost hundreds of thousands of trees. Many had stood for centuries, weathering storms, wars, droughts and famines.
INDIA'S BEATING GREEN HEART
Ramachandra Guha's new book-Speaking with Nature-is a chronicle of homegrown environmentalism that speaks to the world
A NEW LEASE FOR OLD FILMS
NOSTALGIA AND CURIOSITY BRING AUDIENCES BACK TO THE THEATRES TO REVISIT MOVIES OF THE YESTERYEARS
