New York
CNN
—
Sam Bankman-Friedfounder of failed crypto exchange FTX, agreed testify first The House Financial Services Committee next week as questions and confusion swirl around the collapse of his companies.
On Friday, he tweeted that he was “ready to testify about [December] 13,” and said he will “try to be helpful and address what he can” about some of the lawmakers’ concerns, including FTX US’s solvency, “roads process” can bring “value” to the user, what he thinks led to the crash, and ultimately “his own failures”.
“I used to think of myself as a model CEO who wouldn’t become lazy or disconnected,” Bankman-Fried wrote on Twitter. “That makes it much more devastating when I do. I’m sorry. Hopefully people can learn from the difference between who I am and who I could be.”
His tweets were in response to requests from several members of Congress who have requested testimony.
Democratic Chairman, Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Republican Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania have ask him to show up because of “important unanswered questions” surrounding the demise of FTX and its sister hedge fund, Alameda, both of which filed for bankruptcy on Nov.
The senators wrote: “You must answer for the failure of both entities, at least in part, due to the blatant misuse of customer funds and wiping out billions of dollars in debt over a million creditors”.
Bankman-Fried did not say whether he would comply with the Senator’s request for him to testify at a hearing scheduled for Wednesday.
Separately, Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Tina Smith of Minnesota, both Democrats, have sent letters to three regulators — the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. State and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency – ask them to evaluate the traditional banking system. exposed to mayhem in the crypto space, a largely unregulated, parallel financial system.
Warren and Smith wrote: “Cryptocurrency companies may have a closer relationship with the banking system than was previously understood. “Banks’ relationship with crypto companies raises questions about the safety and soundness of our banking system and highlights the potential vulnerabilities that crypto companies have.” can try to exploit to gain more access.”
Federal prosecutors are investigating the demise of FTX, an exchange that touts itself as a beginner-friendly way to enter the booming but volatile digital asset market. until recently. FTX also facilitates high-risk leveraged trading that is not allowed in the US. (The company is based in The Bahamas.)
FTX was one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world until last month, when it faced a sudden wave of customer withdrawals that it couldn’t make up for. One of the key questions that prosecutors are likely to probe is whether FTX embezzled customers’ money when lending to Alameda.
Bankman-Fried has denied allegations of abuse of customer deposits. “I didn’t mean to mix the money,” he told The New York Times last week. “I was really surprised by how big the location of Alameda is.”
Federal prosecutors are also investigating whether Bankman-Fried played a role in the fall this spring of two linked cryptocurrencies, Terra and Luna. according to the New York Timeswhich cites two people familiar with the matter.
The Times said the matter was part of an extensive investigation into the collapse of FTX and it was unclear whether prosecutors had identified any Bankman-Fried misconduct.
In a statement to the newspaper, Bankman-Fried said he was “not aware of any market manipulation and certainly never intended to engage in market manipulation”.
Correction: An earlier version of this story falsely stated that congressional committee Sam Bankman-Fried had said he would testify earlier. He agreed to testify before the House Financial Services Committee.
