FTX SAGA PART I: A Timeline of Major Events
Key Takeaways:
- Timeline of the Collapse of FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried’s recent activities
- Part 1 of 3 in The FTX Collapse Saga published by Boiler Blockchain
Disclaimer: THIS ARTICLE IS NOT AN INVESTMENT ADVICE. Nothing in this article or any other work by Boiler Blockchain constitutes professional or financial advice, nor does any information in this article constitute a comprehensive or complete statement of the matters discussed or the law relating thereto. Boiler Blockchain is not a fiduciary by any person’s use of or access to this Article or Content.
The Calm Before the Storm
Sam Bankman-Fried — SBF — was once proclaimed as one of the kings of cryptocurrency, and even one of the world’s most generous billionaires. Famous for his supposed expertise in quantitative finance, SBF worked at Jane Street as a trader before starting his FTX empire. His business conglomerate was divided into two parts: FTX, the centralized cryptocurrency exchange, and Alameda Research, the trading firm.
His empire began to get exposure with his exchange — FTX. After establishing his exchange through mainstream approaches, SBF successfully raised significant amounts of capital from notable investors, such as the likes of Paradigm, SoftBank Vision Fund, Tiger Global, and Blackstone to name a few. Soon after, SBF’s focus shifted towards more marketing initiatives, spending huge amounts of money to buy Super Bowl Ads, naming rights to the Miami Heat’s Stadium, and more. Finally, Sam was deeply involved in political donations. Official numbers are nearly impossible to prove, however, on paper SBF donated millions to the Democratic Party. In an interview, SBF also claimed he donated an equal amount to republicans, however, these claims are difficult to vs=. Some like CoinTelegraph, have reported SBF’s political donations were split 92-8 → Democrat-Republican.
Recently, Elon Musk has even gone on record stating Sam Bankman-Fried could have donated magnitudes more than previously thought. According to Musk, possibly over a billion USD in a Tweet posted last week.
Timeline
Nov. 2nd — CoinDesk published an article leaking Alameda Research’s Balance Sheet
- The Balance Sheet is mostly comprised of $FTT tokens.
- Other assets are mostly locked.
- A significant amount of assets are in illiquid tokens (i.e. $MAPS, $OXY, $FIDA)
- This article contradicts Amy Wu’s (head of FTX Ventures) claim clarifying that FTX and Alameda are operating under separate entities that date back to August 2022.
Nov. 4th
- An article published by @MikeBurgersburg with the title “IS ALAMEDA RESEARCH INSOLVENT?”
Nov. 5th
- @cz_binance likes the tweet and tweeted “Crypto is high risk”
Nov. 6th — Alameda’s CEO (Caroline) posted a clarification:
- The leaked balance sheet is only a subset of the claimed >$10B assets that aren’t reflected.
- The balance sheet mostly breaks out long positions; hedges aren’t listed
- Most of the loans have been returned
Nov. 6th
- A huge whale transferred 23M $FTT (~$530M) to #Binance
- @cz_binance acting prudently decides to liquidate Binance’s $FTT positions
- @carolinecapital tweeted an offer to purchase all of Binance’s positions at $22, to minimize market impact.
Nov. 7th — @cz_binance declines Caroline’s offer.
- @SBF_FTX reassures clients that withdrawals are being processed and funds are SAFU 🤔.
- @SBF_FTX allegedly proclaims that “a competitor is trying to go after us with false rumors”, whilst also reclarify that FTX is heavily regulated with GAAP audits and has $1B+ in excess cash.
Nov. 8th
- $FTT price breaks through the $22 price line and withdrawals are paused.
- Both @SBF_FTX and @cz_binance announced a non-binding LOI for Binance to acquire FTX, pending due diligence.
Nov. 9th: DEAL IS OFF.
- Reason: issues are beyond Binance’s control or ability to help.
Nov. 10th
- @SBF_FTX clarifies that the issues are only between Alameda and FTX non-US. FTX US is fine.
Nov. 11th — FTX FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY
Everything hereafter happens after FTX crumbled.
$FTT price plummets.
SBF is nailed as the perpetrator, mastermind, and evil genius.
Nov. 13th
- @SBF_FTX posted a tweet that seemingly pictures him having a “mental breakdown”. The tweet is then continued over the following days.
Nov. 14th
- NYTimes proves that SBF lies about not operating together with Alameda.
Nov. 15th
- SBF lied under oath regarding his comments to Congress in December 2021
Nov. 16th
- VOX published an article containing an unexpected confession from SBF himself. Sam’s true persona is finally revealed.
- @SBF_FTX “mental breakdown” tweet is at its end.
- Gemini Earn warns customers about possible withdrawal delays due to issues with their lending partner Genesis having funds on FTX
Nov. 21st — Gemini Launches the Gemini Trust Dashboard
- Gemini sends users a follow-up email to the initial one on Nov. 16th
As a follow-up to our previous message on November 16, 2022, we are writing to let you know that we continue to work with Genesis Global Capital, LLC (Genesis) — the lending partner of Earn — and its parent company Digital Currency Group, Inc. (DCG) to find a solution for Earn users to redeem their funds.
This remains our highest priority and we understand Genesis and DCG remain committed to exploring every possible option to fulfill their obligations to Earn users. We greatly appreciate your patience during this challenging time and are working hard to provide a material informational update soon.
As previously stated, this does not impact any other Gemini products and services. Gemini is a full-reserve exchange and custodian. All customer funds held on the Gemini Exchange and in Gemini Custody are held 1-to-1 and available for withdrawal at any time. You can read more here.
Onward and Upward.
Team Gemini
Nov. 22nd — First FTX Hearing Day
- Overseen by Judge John T. Dorsey
- Co-Head of Sullivan & Cromwell — James Bromley — acted as counsel on behalf of FTX.
- FTX has 200+ bank accounts under 36 banks.
- $1.24B in cash was uncovered at the FTX group of companies.
- However, Bromley stated “a substantial amount of FTX group assets have either been stolen or missing”
- It is revealed in October 2021, SBF raised $420M on behalf of FTX — $300M went to him with reasons as a personal reimbursement for re-purchasing 15% stake in the exchange held by Binance.
- Bromley went on record: “run as a personal fiefdom of SBF”
- FTX owes $3.1B to its top 50 creditors
- Key leaders share a penthouse in the Bahamas
Nov. 28th — BlockFi Filed Chapter 11 Due to FTX Exposure
Dec. 12th — BREAKING!!!: SBF Arrested in Bahamas
Confirmed Future Events:
DEC. 14th — Senate Orders SBF to Testify In-Person With Subpoena On The Table⏱️
Dec. 16th — Omnibus Hearing⏱️
Dec. 20th — Creditors Meeting⏱️
Jan. 11th — Final Hearing⏱️
Thanks for reading! Stay tunned for Part 2 of 3 in our FTX Collapse Saga, where we’ll be doing a deep dive into the key players involved in the collapse and their relationships with one another.
Written By: Gregorius Stanley Tejakusuma & Will Delaney
