The billionaire behind FTX.com said ‘I’m sorry… I f***** up’ yesterday as the crypto-currency exchange teetered on the brink of collapse.
Sam Bankman-Fried, who is known as SBF, issued the humiliating apology as the debacle sent shockwaves through the crypto world.
Last night he was engaged in an urgent push to save his firm as it scrambles to raise about £8billion amid a rush of customer withdrawals – and appeared to suggest he was ready to step away.
Money talks: FTX.com boss Sam Bankman-Fried (pictured with Tony Blair and Bill Clinton earlier this year) has issued a humiliating apology
‘I will not be around if I’m not wanted,’ the 30-year-old wrote on Twitter.
The episode triggered a broader sell-off in cryptocurrencies, with bitcoin falling below $16,000 for the first time since late 2020 exactly a year after it peaked at close $69,000.
It later picked up in a broader market rally. The crisis marks a stunning fall from grace for Bankman-Fried, whose net worth was estimated at more than £20billion just six months ago.
Named last year as the world’s richest person under 30, he attracted the likes of Tony Blair and Bill Clinton to a crypto conference in the Bahamas earlier this year.
Founded in 2019, FTX was once valued at £27billion and Bankman-Fried was once lauded for stepping in to save other crypto firms.
But reports suggested it was mistakes made during those rescues that sowed the seeds of his current problems.
Last night it was he who was seeking help, revealing that he was in talks with ‘a number of players’.
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