Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and CEO of FTX, has said the company has “a few billion” to bail out other cryptocurrency companies.
What Happened: In a recent interview with Reuters, Bankman-Fried said that FTX still has enough cash to do a $2 billion deal if needed.
Over the past few weeks, FTX has been actively involved in providing distressed cryptocurrency companies with much-needed financial relief.
FTX entered a $680 million agreement with cryptocurrency lender BlockFi, which included a $400 million revolving credit facility and an option to acquire the firm at $240 million, conditional on approval by shareholders.
Bankman-Fried-owned Alameda Research also loaned broker Voyager Digital Ltd (OTC: VYGVF) $200 million after Three Arrows Capital (3AC) defaulted on a $665 million loan. On Wednesday, Voyager filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Despite the market-wide carnage and distress among crypto firms, Bankman-Fried told Reuters that he believes the worst is over for the crypto industry.
Several cryptocurrency companies have reportedly reached out to him for help, and the FTX chief said he feels more comfortable giving out his own money for the cause.
"FTX has shareholders and we have a duty to do reasonable things by them and I certainly feel more comfortable incinerating my own money," he reportedly said.
Last month, SkyBridge Capital’s Anthony Scaramucci compared Bankman-Fried’s efforts to what JPMorgan Chase & Co's (NYSE: NYSE:JPM) founder did to stem 'The Panic of 1907' financial crisis.
“Sam Bankman-Fried (@SBF_FTX) is the new John Pierpont Morgan -- he is bailing out cryptocurrency markets the way the original J.P. Morgan did after the crisis of 1907” - @Scaramucci https://t.co/CiDg5rbvENPrice Action: At press time, Bitcoin was trading at $20,517, gaining 3.11% over the last 24 hours as per data from Benzinga Pro.— SkyBridge (@SkyBridge) June 21, 2022
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