The X account of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the former CEO of the collapsed FTX exchange, suddenly became active on Tuesday after months of dormancy with a brief post.
On Tuesday evening, Sam’s verified X account posted the short greeting ‘gm’, slang for “good morning.” The post quickly drew attention as he is currently serving a 25-year sentence in federal prison and is prohibited from using social media.
In a follow-up post about three hours later, the account claimed that a friend was posting on SBF’s behalf.
Currently, SBF’s bio reads, “SBF’s words (mostly). Shared by a friend.” This claim has added a layer of scrutiny to the situation, particularly given the specific details of his incarceration. SBF is currently held at FCI Terminal Island.
He was allegedly last active on X in February, posting a long thread about layoffs, workplace struggles, and government bureaucracy. In it, he joked about ignoring emails and expressed sympathy for those losing jobs. That thread sparked speculation over whether the posts came from him in prison or someone posting on his behalf. Additionally, at the time, following the post, FTT saw a 29% surge.
Prison restrictions
Bankman-Fried was convicted last year of fraud and conspiracy for misusing billions in customer funds. After 18 months at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, he was moved in April to the Federal Correctional Institution at Terminal Island in Los Angeles.
Inmates there can only send monitored text-only messages through a system called TRULINCS and have no access to the wider internet. Possessing a contraband phone is strictly prohibited and carries serious consequences for the inmates.
The X post’s impact on the market
The message from Bankman-Fried was short, but it sent ripples through crypto markets. FTT, the token once tied to the FTX exchange, jumped almost 60% in price within hours. The price has surged to $1.3 from $0.82.
According to TradingView, the FTT token dropped slightly, reaching $0.989. Even the trading volume of the token has surged to $63 million from $10 million. FTT has no real function since FTX collapsed in 2022, but it remains a vehicle for speculation.
The timing of the post also coincided with new legal moves around FTX’s bankruptcy. Earlier this week, the FTX Recovery Trust sued Bitcoin mining company Genesis Digital, seeking to claw back $1.15 billion it says was paid unfairly before the exchange’s collapse. Meanwhile, the estate is preparing to distribute $1.6 billion to creditors by the end of September.
Even from prison, Bankman-Fried continues to draw attention in the crypto world, showing that the fallout from FTX’s collapse is far from over.
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