Cryptofinance: In the footsteps of Sam Bankman-Fried on the Bahamas
Cryptofinance: In the footsteps of Sam Bankman-Fried on the Bahamas
Welcome to this week FT Cryptofinance newsletter, who comes to them from the Bahamas, where I spoke to people about FTX.
ftx was the big fish that the Bahamas caught in when they tried to become a leading market for digital assets in the heart of the Caribbean.
The plan was embodied by the FTX Blowout Conference in April, in which the Prime Minister of Bahamas, Philip Davis, Tony Blair, Bill Clinton, Katy Perry and NFL star Tom Brady and supermodel Gisele Bündchen (then still).
After the crypto empire has exploded by Sam Bankman-Fried, a dampening fog of silence has laid over the island, as I found here during my stay this week.
The collapse of FTX is a serious challenge for the Prime Minister, since he regarded his presence on the island as part of the country's recovery by the hurricane Dorian in 2019 and the Covid 19 pandemic. As for Bankman-Fried, some say that he kept himself. "He is just a little boy who is hiding in Albany," said a taxi driver.
Albany is a luxury resort community that is in the shared possession of Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, Justin Timberlake and Joe Lewis, the British entrepreneur.
A local told me that Albany was an "island on the island", a place where the members can spend their whole life and almost never have to leave. There is even a high school for children. A 600 hectare community, the secret lies far beyond what the eye can see, even if - as I - curious enough, it is unannounced to appear on the safety locks.
"I'm sorry that you got all the way from London, but I can't give you any information," said the guard.
"FTX went to Albany because they wanted privacy and they knew that Albany offers exactly that," said a local. "Dubai is the place where people show with their money. Albany is the place where people go to keep it secret."
This is more secret in a not intrusive than in a shameful sense. Nevertheless, it works like a magic when a storm strikes. Repeated attempts to penetrate doors behind Albanys were unsuccessful. Passes for non -members were once on offer, but an Albany employee told me that none were now available. A driver who left the property did not give any comments to the press; He almost drove over my foot in his hurry. Another employee briefly told me: "Albany is working on confidentiality."
Stefen Deleveaux, Managing Director of Caribbean Blockchain Alliance, said at lunch that people "just don't really think of Albany". "We won't have the money to live there, I have never really thought about it until this week."
It is not just Bankman-Fried's residential complex that tries to avoid the spotlight. Over there in the Baha Mar, the luxury resort for this era, the vast majority of employees told me that they are not free to talk about FTX or his former CEO.
But a worker-whom I found in the FTX conference center-told me, "everyone was excited" when the crypto king came into the city.
The jazz club in the Baha Mar © scott chipolina
The jazz club, so I was told, was one of the favorites of the FTX crew. But when it got hard, Baha Mar also pulled the tract bridge.
"Nobody will tell you anything about anything," an employee told me at the reception. I urged an interview with the manager, they said: "You want an honest answer? My superior asked me to tell you on Google."
The fact is that the Bahamas are a small place, and most people are simply not ready to stretch their throat with "delicate" topics. Not even the government: I repeatedly asked for an interview with the Prime Minister, but my inquiries were rejected. "People don't want to expose themselves to undesirable public control," said a Bahamaer.
While some rush to avoid uncomfortable questions, lose the simple people in the palm trees and beaches with clear water, which surround the island. A taxi driver told me that the Bahamas was disappointed with FTX's collapse because his arrival promises "good things" - like jobs for the economy.
As our video shows, the collapse of FTX could never be symbolized better than through the desolate and overgrown terrain that the future main office of the stock exchange on the island should accommodate.