The FTX saga has some lessons for voters

Dig deeper and pay attention to the details

Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) became the poster boy for cryptocurrencies when his fortune swelled to a nominal $32 billion as his company, Alameda Research, and cryptocurrency exchange, FTX, soared in apparent value attracting a lot of attention and a host of famous celebrity investors. Last week, SBF lost pretty well all that wealth as FTX failed and SBF was arrested in the Bahamas on suspicion of a number of crimes, likely including wire fraud. The SBF network began to collapse just last week according to reports.

What makes this story more interesting is the ties to the Democratic Party in the United States and TO aid paid to Ukraine by the Biden Administration. This meme circulating on social media points to a troubling linkage, most elements of which cannot be doubted. SBF was a major donor to the Democrats, the Democrats did back Biden’s run for the Oval office, the Biden Administration did provide billions of aid to Ukraine. The nature of Ukraine’s ties to FTX remain a bit murky but there is no doubt there were such ties. At least one theory has Ukraine aid being laundered back to the Democrats, among others. Ukraine seems to have been a favorite nation among the Biden’s if the stories about Hunter Biden and his father have substance.

Another interesting linkage is the connection’s through MIT, SBF’s alma mater - ¹ SBF graduated from MIT in 2014. The linkage is with SEC commissioner Gary Gensler who was an MIT professor working under Glenn Ellison, another MIT professor, and Ellison’s daughter Caroline who dated SBF and who became the CEO of SBF’s soon-to-be defunct Alameda Research entity. Gensler will now oversee the SEC and DOJ investigation into the collapse of FTX. What goes around, comes round.

Former Democratic President Bill Clinton might come to regret his connection to Bankman-Fried as the sordid details of money from Ukraine aid finding its way back to Democrats running for office in the 2020 and 2022 elections come to light, if that theory proves out.

But, Clinton is unlikely to be more embarassed by his connection to SBF than his apparent friendship with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

The Ukraine story will unfold in due course, and Canadians will be interested in seeing how Canadian donations to Ukraine were used and whether they can be traced back to Justin Trudeau or members of his government, particularly in light of the $500 million Canada just announced it will be sending to support Ukraine military. My grandparents had a saying I remember well - “there is never just one cockroach”.

I suspect this spectacle will unfold with another triumph of power over money with Mr. Bankman-Fried being fitted out for an orange jumpsuit, his creditors taking a bath of significant proportions, and neither the Bidens, Democrats, Liberals or Trudeau being implicated in any wrongdoing.

People who make the laws rarely feel their pinch regardless of their conduct not only in African or Latin American countries run by tyrants but also in Western democracies run by elected officials. Let’s wait a few weeks and see if investigative journalism reincarnates itself like Lazarus or like a Phoenix emerges from the ashes of mainstream media who continue to be the enablers and protectors of Biden and Trudeau, among others. A deep dive into the complex relationships surrounding SBF, Alameda, FTX and the Democrats might create some Pulitzer prize-winning headlines. While evidence of any corruption has yet to emerge, I can almost smell it.

Any chance society will change? A Republican House of Representatives and Pierre Poilievre as Canada’s next Prime Minister might be a good start.

1. MIT is a great school. My son James graduated with an MBA from MIT in 2010 with a 4.6 Grade Point Average.