In a rambling 250-page document penned during his house arrest, Sam Bankman-Fried came to a conclusion: “I’m broke, wearing an ankle monitor and one of the most hated people in the world.”
The 15,000 word self-reflection is formatted into a series of Twitter posts—though the site is now known as X—and was written while the FTX founder was on house arrest at his parents’ home in Palo Alto.
The cryptocurrency exchange founder wrote the piece—complete with links to music videos from the likes of Rihanna, Katy Perry, and Alicia Keys—before his bail was rescinded and he was ordered to report to federal prison on Aug. 11.
Bankman-Fried has pled not guilty to charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging misappropriation of customer funds from the collapsed crypto exchange FTX for the purposes of its affiliated trading firm, Alameda Research.
Further charges—which Bankman-Fried also denies—were brought in March, including conspiracy to commit money laundering, unlawful political contributions, and bribing a Chinese official.
The new documents, in which Bankman-Fried attempts to unpick and justify the near $9 billion implosion of FTX, were sent to social media cryptocurrency influencer Tiffany Fong.
Fong, who has previously released interviews with Bankman-Fried, gave the documents to the New York Times, telling the publications she believes she was given the file because she didn’t work for anybody and could draw her own conclusions from the account.
Fong said she had lost money herself in the $5 billion collapse of Celsius Network and empathized with those who had lost money to FTX—adding she was skeptical about Bankman-Fried’s claims.
Fong has been approached by Coins2Day for comment.
In the excerpts detailed in the Times report, Bankman-Fried paints a remorseful figure, weaving childhood memories and mathematical equations into the account.
Having criticized members of his close circle, the 31-year-old, due to go on trial in March next year, said ultimately “the truth is that I did what I thought was right.”
Representatives for Bankman-Fried did not immediately respond to Coins2Day‘s request for comment.
‘Being exes didn’t help’
Bankman-Fried also made a series of claims about his former girlfriend, Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison, in the documents seen by the Times.
Among the accusations is that Ellison—who has pleaded guilty to seven charges related to fraud and money laundering—avoided talking about risk management “until it was too late” and supposedly cried in meetings.
In a document titled “Alameda’s Failure to Hedge,” Bankman-Fried wrote: “Every time that I reached out with suggestions, it just made her feel worse. I’m sure that being exes didn’t help.”
Ellison’s lawyers did not immediately respond to Coins2Day’s request for comment.
The crypto boss has previously been accused of trying to discredit Ellison—who will be a key witness in his trial—as a “jilted lover.”
Copies of Ellison’s diary found their way into the hands of the New York Times this summer with prosecutors calling it an attempt to “publicly discredit a government witness.”
At the time, representatives for Bankman-Fried did not respond to Coins2Day’s request for comment.
The Google doc penned by Ellison and shared with the Times paints her as overwhelmed and insecure. “Running Alameda doesn’t feel like something I’m that comparatively advantaged at or well suited to do,” she reportedly wrote in one entry.
In another, she worries about “making things weird” with Bankman-Fried—who founded FTX in 2019—and feared “causing drama” between them.
‘I believe fairly strongly in not lying’
The Bankman-Fried excerpts also give a glimpse into the individual the judge can expect to find on the stand: one who grew his business from his parents’ home, someone who has struggled in love, and who believes he ultimately tries to do his best.
Among the tweet-formatted recount were personal photos and 29 other documents relating to FTX: attacks on the company’s bankruptcy lawyers, screenshots from the likes of Christopher Nolan’s Inception movie, and even a link to Bankman-Fried’s Amazon purchases from 2021.
The Times writes one section of the account also discusses his growth along with FTX: from his family home to a penthouse in the Bahamas, not far from the company’s headquarters.
Likewise, his rumination on his relationship with Ellison states the pair ended “the same way most of my relationships end,” adding: “They want more intimacy and commitment and public visibility than I do and I feel claustrophobic.”
Bankman-Fried also uses the account to deny he ever misused FTX funds. According to the Times, in a document titled “Truth,” he wrote: “As a general matter, I don’t lie. It’s something that I believe fairly strongly in.”
