Proactive Investors - They say it takes a village to raise a child.
Similarly, it takes a bent system to raise would could turn out to be one of America’s great fraudsters.
It’s up to the jury to decide if FTX founder and former boss Sam Bankman-Fried is actually guilty of mass fraud and money laundering, rather than simply being a goofy, floppy-haired youngster in over his head.
But it’s going to be more than just SBF on trial in New York.
From major celebrities and sports stars to some of the world’s foremost private equity funds and media institutions, the whole world once had SBF’s back.
In a now-deleted puff piece (which thanks to the Internet Archive, is still widely available), venture fund Sequoia Capital spent no less than 13,000 words proselytising SBF like the second coming of Christ himself.
“In devoting every waking moment of his life to work, SBF doesn’t feel he’s doing anything unusual or extraordinary. He’s doing what he feels every right-minded person should do—if they were big-hearted and clear-headed. He’s attempting to maximize the amount of good in the world,” gushed the article’s writer Adam Fisher.
Shark Tank investor Kevin O’Leary also jumped on the bandwagon, alongside household-name celebrities like Larry David, Tom Brady and NBA star Stephen Curry.
Countless YouTube finance channels cut lucrative advertising deals too, as did Merseces’ Formula 1 team in a long-term partnership.
Not all bandwagoners jumped ship immediately, especially not O’Leary, who Tweeted to the world his support for SBF, via a Retweet from Pershing Square’s Bill Ackman no less.
I lost millions as an investor in @FTX and got sandblasted as a paid spokesperson for the firm but after listening to that interview I’m in the @billAckman camp about the kid! https://t.co/5lWzTT7JEv— Kevin O'Leary aka Mr. Wonderful (@kevinolearytv) December 1, 2022
Some of these figures could appear in court down the line.
In the meantime, today’s testimony will come from Adam Yedidia, Bankman-Fried’s former college roommate and employee, who was one of many former colleagues to pledge their support to the people versus Bankman-Fried.
FTX co-founder Gary Wang, who took a plea deal by pleading guilty to wire fraud in turn for rolling over on SBF, is also expected to take the stand.
There could be fireworks.