Sam Bankman-Fried awaits trial, spends his time playing video games and blogging about his new newsletter Substack

In this post, SBF argues that “an extreme, rapid and targeted crash, precipitated by Binance’s CEO, rendered Alameda insolvent.” The blog post does not mention the allegations made by his former colleagues, former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison and FTX co-founder Gary Wang. The disgraced former FTX executive also conducted a one-on-one interview at his Palo Alto home with Puck News reporter Theodore Schleifer.

FTX’s former CEO fights fraud charges and maintains his innocence in a new post on Substack.

FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has been more vocal of late since his arrest and initial appearances before a judge in the Southern District of New York. On January 12, 2023, SBF launched a newsletter about Substack called “SBF’s Substack” and published his first posts on the fall of FTX and Alameda Research, the quantitative trading firm he founded in 2019. In the first blog post, SBF insists that he did not steal client funds.

https://t.co/XVd0BPHxEU

SBF (@SBF_FTX) January 12, 2023

“I didn’t steal funds, and I certainly didn’t hide billions“, wrote the former FTX CEO. SBF also stressed that he did not “led Alameda in recent years“. He said three factors contributed to the downfall of FTX and Alameda, including Alameda’s bloated balance sheet and Alameda’s “sufficiently hedge its market exposure“. In addition, SBF believes that the final nail in FTX’s coffin was driven in by Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao. In the Substack blog post, SBF stated:

In November 2022, an extreme, rapid and targeted crash precipitated by Binance’s CEO rendered Alameda insolvent.

Much of SBF Substack’s blog post is similar to previous interviews he gave before his arrest. There is little new information in the blog post compared to what the FTX co-founder said during his media tour in mid-November 2022. While SBF insists that he “did not steal any funds“The former FTX executive does not address the allegations of his former colleagues, former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison and FTX co-founder Gary Wang, who reported financial misconduct and the commingling of FTX client funds with Alameda Research from 2019.

Sam Bankman-Fried reaches out to his new CEO, but remains isolated and lonely.

Sam Bankman-Fried also mentioned that after transferring FTX US to John J. Ray III, the stock was still solvent. “It is ridiculous that FTX US users have not yet recovered their funds“, commented SBF in its blog post. The former FTX CEO, who was removed from his position, also discussed his relationship with new FTX CEO Ray with Puck News, Theodore Schleifer. Puck’s reporter meets SBF at his parents’ home in Palo Alto, California, where Sam Bankman-Fried welcomed him wearing his government-issued ankle bracelet. SBF’s German shepherd, “Sandor“, was also present at the house.

I wrote the other day that Sam Bankman-Fried believes deeply that the traditional crisis comms textbook is dead.

The decision to release this says it all better than I could. https://t.co/gAVcmy08sK

Teddy Schleifer (@teddyschleifer) January 12, 2023

Teddy Schleifer reported that SBF contacted FTX’s new CEO, John Ray, “six or seven times” to offer his help. The Puck reporter noted that Ray had “kept his distance“with the former CEO of FTX. The interview emphasizes that SBF feels alone and isolated and that he is “relieved to have regained access to the Internet“reports Teddy Schleifer. The Puck reporter had known SBF before the exchange disappeared, as they had talked in the fall of 2020. Teddy Schleifer wrote “we were both interested in the movement of effective altruism“and they “texted every few months about politics or philanthropy.” The interview lasted two and a half hours, and SBF discussed his difficulty being vegan while in prison in the Bahamas and eating a lot of peanut butter.

While awaiting his October 3, 2023 trial in the Southern District of New York and facing eight counts of financial fraud and conspiracy, SBF continues to play “a lot of video games.“According to Schleifer, SBF’s game of choice these days is “Storybrook Brawl“, but the disgraced FTX co-founder does not use his game handle and does not talk with other players. Although he plays video games, “it doesn’t really distract him from what’s going on“, SBF told Schleifer.

Although Teddy Schleifer notes “that there are not many real people to [SBF] to talk to“, the interview does not address the accusations made by Ellison and Wang.