Key Takeaways:
In his new memoir, 'Freedom of Money', Binance founder Changpeng Zhao claims he never intended to acquire the collapsing FTX exchange in November 2022, an event that saw $6 billion in customer withdrawals in just 72 hours.
"The whole thing felt surreal," Zhao wrote, recounting a conversation where former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried was "casually asking for a few billion" as if he were "ordering a sandwich."
Zhao's account pinpoints the moment of collapse to a public offer from Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison to purchase all available FTT tokens at $22. This move, intended to signal strength, was interpreted by the market as a desperate, under-capitalized bid to defend a price floor, triggering the final bank run. The failed acquisition and subsequent collapse have had long-standing effects on exchange regulation and user trust.
The memoir's revelations could reshape the historical narrative of one of crypto's largest collapses, reinforcing the importance of transparency and risk management for centralized platforms. While unlikely to impact asset prices directly, the account serves as a critical case study for the industry ahead of potential new exchange regulations in several jurisdictions.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
