- Sam Bankman believes Trump’s crypto policies will be more favorable than Biden’s, especially with a change in SEC leadership.
- He is serving a 25-year prison sentence but hopes for an early release through appeals or legal programs.
- He claims to have no money left, blaming bankruptcy proceedings, and deeply regrets the FTX collapse.
Sam Bankman, the ex-CEO of FTX, recently provided a rare prison interview with Tucker Carlson, in which he spoke about cryptocurrency during Donald Trump’s presidency, his life in prison, and his finances.
He hoped that Trump’s strategy for crypto regulations would make the environment more favorable for the industry.
Sam Bankman About Biden
In his opinion, the Biden administration put crypto companies in a difficult position, particularly with strict SEC regulations under Gary Gensler.
He feels that a change of leadership at the SEC and Trump’s policies could assist the market, but he also mentioned that actual improvements would depend on how aggressively the administration formulates policies.
“The US is 30% of the world’s finance but only about 5% of the world’s crypto. That’s entirely because of regulation. The SEC and regulators have made it hard for crypto companies to operate, and that’s why we’ve seen so many move to places like Dubai, Singapore, and Europe.” he stated.
Sam Bankman is now serving a 25-year prison term for his involvement in the FTX collapse. He acknowledged that without legal intervention, he might stay in prison until his late 50s. Nevertheless, he spoke of the possibility of having his sentence reduced through legal appeals or other programs.
When questioned whether sam bankman could survive his entire sentence, he doubted it, explaining that life in prison is psychologically draining and provides very little productive activity. Sam Bankman also mentioned that he lives on the same prison unit as Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs and explained that he was a nice guy.
As far as his financial status goes, he said he had no money left, adding that FTX held around $15 billion in liabilities while it only had $3 billion in assets prior to its crash. He attributed bankruptcy proceedings for eliminating any remaining money.
Although some customers have made payments, he labeled the FTX collapse as the largest failure of his life.
In the meantime, FTX has begun paying creditors, with the initial phase paying out smaller claims and the second phase to start in May.
During his interview, he looked back at the whole ordeal, saying he profoundly regrets what transpired and never wanted it to go this way. He also added that if he isn’t pardoned, he anticipates being let out of prison in his late 40s.
