Hours after he resigned as CEO of crypto exchange FTX and entered the business into bankruptcy proceedings, Sam Bankman-Fried offered another apology to investors and customers while saying he remains optimistic about the companys future. But he also said he was as shocked as anyone at how quickly things fell apart.
In a statement on Twitter, Bankman-Fried, who goes by SBF, said Im really sorry, again, that we ended up here. Hopefully things can find a way to recover.
The statement comes one day after a blunter apology posted Thursday, where he wrote Im sorry. Thats the biggest thing. I fucked up, and should have done better.
The comments from Bankman-Fried seemingly wont be the last. In his statement, he vowed to offer full clarity on what led the company, valued at its peak at around $32 billion, into bankruptcy in such a rapid fashion.
Im going to work on giving clarity on where things are in terms of user recovery ASAP, he said. Im piecing together all of the details, but I was shocked to see things unravel the way they did earlier this week. I will, soon, write up a more complete post on the play by play, but I want to make sure that I get it right when I do.
Its unclear whether he will address the events that saw archrival exchange Binance offer to rescue it before quickly backing out, saying In the beginning, our hope was to be able to support FTXs customers to provide liquidity, but the issues are beyond our control or ability to help.
Bankman-Fried saw his own fortunes vanish as FTX collapsed. He was personally valued at $16 billion just last week.
Here is Bankman-Frieds full statement:
Hi all: Today, I filed FTX, FTX US, and Alameda for voluntary Chapter 11 proceedings in the US. Im really sorry, again, that we ended up here. Hopefully things can find a way to recover. Hopefully this can bring some amount of transparency, trust, and governance to them. Ultimately hopefully it can be better for customers.
This doesnt necessarily have to mean the end for the companies or their ability to provide value and funds to their customers chiefly, and can be consistent with other routes. Ultimately Im optimistic that Mr. Ray and others can help provide whatever is best.
Im going to work on giving clarity on where things are in terms of user recovery ASAP. Im piecing together all of the details, but I was shocked to see things unravel the way they did earlier this week. I will, soon, write up a more complete post on the play by play, but I want to make sure that I get it right when I do.
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