On Nov. 29, 2022, the crypto protagonist and reporter, Tiffany Fong, published an interrogation with the erstwhile FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) that was recorded 13 days earlier the interrogation was released. During the interview, SBF discussed who helium thinks whitethorn person hacked FTX and helium further denied helium had a backdoor installed to funnel funds betwixt FTX and Alameda Research. “I don’t adjacent cognize however to code,” SBF stressed to Fong during the conversation. Additionally, the New York Times claims to person obtained a slew of emails and substance messages betwixt FTX’s ineligible counsel, different apical executives, and SBF portion the speech was successful the midst of collapse.
SBF Claims Backdoor Accusations Are ‘Definitely Not True,’ Probably a ‘Poorly Labeled Accounting Thing’
Roughly 2 weeks ago, the co-founder and erstwhile CEO of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), decided to bash a telephone interrogation with Tiffany Fong. The telephone interrogation (here and here) was revealed by Fong a fewer days earlier she published it, and connected Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2022, the treatment with SBF was published connected Youtube.
“You don’t get into the concern we got in, if you marque each the close decisions,” SBF said during his chat. “If I’d been much cautious … there’s a cardinal things I could person done.” In the interview, Fong talked astir the alleged “backdoor” that was mentioned successful a Reuters nonfiction that said, “executives acceptable up a book-keeping backdoor.”
SBF denied the “backdoor” claims erstwhile helium spoke with Fong, and helium insisted that helium “literally ne'er opened the codebase for immoderate of FTX.” “That’s decidedly not existent … I don’t adjacent cognize however to code,” the erstwhile FTX CEO remarked. SBF said helium doesn’t cognize precisely what the Reuters nonfiction was referring to erstwhile they published a communicative astir the backdoor. SBF said, however, it whitethorn person been a “poorly labeled accounting thing,” erstwhile helium stated:
I was incorrect … I was incorrect connected Alameda’s balances connected FTX by a reasonably ample number, an embarrassingly ample one.
SBF Discusses ‘Dark’ Donations to Republicans to Appease ‘Super-Liberal’ Media, FTX Co-Founder Touches connected FTX’s Wallet ‘Hack’
During the interrogation with Fong, SBF touched upon run concern successful the U.S. and addressed however high-up FTX officials donated millions of U.S. dollars to America’s two-party strategy of politicians. While its wide known SBF donated to the Democratic party, the FTX co-founder said helium donated to Republicans successful the acheronian to appease wide media. “I donated astir the aforesaid magnitude to some parties,” Bankman-Fried said.

“All my Republican donations were dark,” SBF told Fong during the telephone conversation. “The crushed was not for regulatory reasons. It’s due to the fact that reporters freak the f*** retired if you donate to Republicans, they’re each super-liberal, and I didn’t privation to person that fight.”
SBF besides told Fong that the theories surrounding FTX and Ukraine were false, but noted that helium wished helium was “part of an planetary conspiracy that interesting.” Bankman-Fried besides talked astir the hacker who drained FTX’s wallets the aforesaid time the steadfast filed for bankruptcy protection.
The FTX co-founder believes helium “narrowed it down to similar 8 radical — I don’t cognize which 1 it was.” SBF besides told Fong that helium was capable to get superior successful the sum of $4 cardinal from an unspecified money “eight minutes” aft his speech filed for bankruptcy protection. Furthermore, contempt the red flags surrounding FTX’s FTT token and however it was held by precise fewer wallets (and still is), SBF wholeheartedly believed FTT was amended than a batch of different tokens.
“I deliberation [FTT token] was fundamentally much legit than a batch of tokens successful immoderate ways,” SBF explained during his interrogation with Fong. “It was much economically underpinned than the mean token was,” helium added.
Report Claims SBF ‘Ignored’ Warnings and ‘Clung to Power’ Waiting Until the Last Minute to Relinquish Control of FTX
On the aforesaid day, Fong released her interrogation with SBF, New York Times (NYT) newsman David Yaffe-Bellany published an article featuring quotes from “dozens of pages of emails and backstage messages” obtained by the publication. The study said during the clip FTX was collapsing reportedly determination was “no cooperation” with SBF, arsenic acold arsenic giving up power of the exchange.
The NYT study claims documents amusement that FTX’s ineligible counsel and different apical executives wanted SBF to relinquish authorization instantly and prep for bankruptcy proceedings. “[SBF] ignored their warnings and clung to power, seemingly convinced that helium could prevention the firm, contempt mounting grounds to the contrary,” the study details.

FTX’s pb ineligible counsel subordinate Ryne Miller, a erstwhile U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) worker for implicit 3 years, insisted “the exchanges indispensable beryllium halted immediately.” The email to FTX unit connected Nov. 10 stressed: “The founding squad is not presently successful a cooperative posture.” That aforesaid day, the NYT study says SBF told the FTX unit that helium was trying to rise superior but successful a substance connection to apical executives, Miller remarked the fundraising chances had a “0% likelihood.”
Another connection the NYT reviewed shows that FTX’s main operating officer, Constance Wang, told employees “I don’t privation to halt trying yet” erstwhile things were looking rather bleak for the crypto exchange.
According to Yaffe-Bellany’s report, successful a radical chat with a fig of FTX employees, Alameda Research’s CEO Caroline Ellison said she was “kinda disquieted that everyone is gonna quit/take clip off.” Yaffe-Bellany’s study says that successful backstage messages FTX officials “pressed the lawsuit with Mr. Bankman-Fried’s father,” the Stanford Law prof Joe Bankman.
Between talking with his dada and an alleged fundraising treatment with Tron laminitis Justin Sun, SBF yet gave up power to John Jay Ray III. Ray is FTX’s new CEO and is overseeing the bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings. The interrogation with Tiffany Fong followed 5 days aft helium relinquished power of the institution and FTX filed for bankruptcy protection.
After the interview, Fong noted that “SBF expresses remorse successful this interview” and successful different statement, she said she was “not expecting to person an impromptu telephone telephone [with] Sam Bankman-Fried.” The erstwhile FTX CEO is besides scheduled to speak with Andrew Ross Sorkin astatine the yearly New York Times Dealbook Summit connected Nov. 30.
Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison reportedly near Hong Kong and fled to Dubai, but reports are unconfirmed. FTX co-founder Gary Wang’s determination is presently chartless astatine the clip of writing, and some Wang and Ellison person yet to speech to the press.
Tags successful this story
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What bash you deliberation astir erstwhile FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s interrogation with Tiffany Fong? What bash you deliberation astir the New York Times study that says SBF didn’t relinquish power of FTX truthful easily? Let america cognize what you deliberation astir this taxable successful the comments conception below.
Jamie Redman
Jamie Redman is the News Lead astatine Bitcoin.com News and a fiscal tech writer surviving successful Florida. Redman has been an progressive subordinate of the cryptocurrency assemblage since 2011. He has a passionateness for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written much than 6,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News astir the disruptive protocols emerging today.
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