He had devised an intricate system to predict electoral college votes in different states in the 2016 US election faster than they were called on CNN. He nailed it, but the next morning, everything changed. The market rallied on the back of a Trump victory. Jane Street had bet the other way. They lost $300 million. Bankman-Fried feared the worst. He didn’t receive so much as a slap on the wrist.
Yet the next time his big judgement calls went south, Bankman-Fried would not find it so easy to get off the hook.
In November 2022, FTX, a digital currency exchange he had set up, collapsed in a matter of days after it suffered billions of dollars in customer withdrawals, sending shockwaves through the crypto world. The entrepreneur, who seemed to only ever wear the same wrinkled T-shirt and cargo shorts, went from being the world’s richest man under 30 (worth $22.5 billion) to being under house arrest in his parents’ home, with a tracking bracelet clamped around his ankle. His trial for fraud and money laundering began this week. He denies the charges.
To make sense of all this, with perfect timing, comes Michael Lewis, the author of Moneyball and The Big Short, who was already working on a book about Bankman-Fried prior to FTX’s collapse. Going Infinite is his superbly detailed picture of the man behind it.
This story is from the October 06, 2023 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 06, 2023 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Only £65k a month to live like Boy George
The Karma Chameleon singer listed his house for £17m in 2022, turning down offers. Now, he's looking for a tenant
Welcome to London, unicorn capital of Europe
We're flying far ahead of anywhere outside US for tech investment
Arteta's Arsenal evolution The next phase
Malik Ouzia and Simon Collings assess how the Spaniard will try to bring down Man City after he signs up for another three years with the title in his sights
Title fight catches fire after Gunners embrace dark side
Arsenal-City clashes take on a welcome edge of animosity
Whack the hippy gong-boho's back
It happened in Paris one grey February day. Sienna Miller was in an oversized, black leather jacket, lace-trimmed silk slip and clumpy great wedges.
There's a Starlink waiting in the sky... 7,000 in fact.Can Elon Musk stop them crashing to Earth?
As he was preparing his fields for seeding this year, Barry Sawchuk came across a giant slab of space debris. It had come from a spacecraft belonging to Elon Musk’s company, SpaceX.
'Politicians are only into power-mongering, corruption and cronyism'
We speak to alt revolutionary DEEPAK CHOPRA about biomarkers, his digital twin and his work to save humanity from disease
I've been waiting for a production of Godotthis brilliant all my life
Ben Whishaw and Lucian Msamati bring a potent, tragicomic chemistry to James Macdonald’s rich revival of Samuel Beckett’s challenging play.
Trust me, the Ritz is London's bestrestaurant
To whom we turn in moments of gloom and glory can be instructive, a filter of our truest friends. I've fallen out with the Ritz a couple of times, including once after a visit to the bar which didn’t warrant a review (“But you said it was lovely!” they said.
'Healing is a dirty word'
After four traumatic years, FKA twigs is back with a new album -and a thrilling metamorphosis