Former FTX Boss Claims His Biggest Mistake Was Giving Up His Company

Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder of collapsed crypto exchange FTX, has once again spoken out from prison — this time admitting that his “biggest mistake” wasn’t the mismanagement of customer funds, but his decision to hand over control of the company to new management.

“The single biggest mistake I made by far was handing the company over.”

According to the former FTX chief, he signed over leadership of the company to John J. Ray III on November 11, 2022, amid mounting pressure and liquidity issues.

Just minutes after transferring control, Bankman-Fried claimed he received a call about a potential external investment that could have saved the exchange from collapse — but by then, his signature had already sealed FTX’s fate.

Shortly after taking charge, Ray filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and enlisted Sullivan & Cromwell (S&C) as legal counsel for the proceedings. Within a month, Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas and extradited to the United States, where he was later convicted on seven felony counts related to fraud and conspiracy.

Questions Emerge Over Sullivan & Cromwell’s Role

In a twist that has fueled conspiracy theories across the crypto community, the same law firm that guided FTX’s bankruptcy — Sullivan & Cromwell — was also the one that initially recommended Ray as a potential restructuring officer. Emails later revealed that S&C attorney Andrew Dietderich had contacted Bankman-Fried just days before the bankruptcy filing to suggest bringing Ray on board.

This revelation has prompted speculation about whether the events leading up to FTX’s downfall were purely coincidental or part of a coordinated power play. On Feb. 16, 2024, a group of FTX creditors filed a lawsuit accusing S&C of aiding and benefiting from FTX’s multibillion-dollar fraud.

Though the case was voluntarily dismissed in October 2024, court filings show that S&C earned more than $171.8 million in legal fees from the FTX bankruptcy by mid-2024.

FTX Creditors Still Waiting for Full Repayment

Nearly three years since FTX’s collapse, creditors are still waiting to recover the funds lost in the $8.9 billion implosion. The FTX estate began repayments in February 2025 with a $1.2 billion distribution, followed by a $5 billion payout in May. A third round in September added another $1.6 billion, bringing total repayments to roughly $7.8 billion to date.

The estate is estimated to hold as much as $16.5 billion in recovered assets, enough to fully reimburse creditors. FTX has announced plans to return 118% of account value to at least 98% of customers, a rare outcome in bankruptcy proceedings of this scale. Still, many investors remain skeptical about whether the process will truly deliver full restitution.

The fall of FTX in late 2022 sent shockwaves through the entire digital asset sector, triggering a domino effect of bankruptcies and ushering in one of crypto’s longest bear markets. Bitcoin plummeted to $16,000, and investor trust in centralized exchanges suffered a historic blow.

Today, as Bitcoin trades near record highs and the industry rebuilds under tighter regulations, FTX remains a cautionary tale of unchecked ambition and governance failure.

SBF’s “Biggest Mistake” Isn’t What He Thinks

While Bankman-Fried insists his downfall stemmed from misplaced trust in John Ray, this narrative risks rewriting history. The FTX disaster wasn’t caused by one managerial decision — it was the culmination of reckless financial practices, a lack of transparency, and a deeply flawed internal structure.

Blaming Ray may be SBF’s attempt to recast himself as a victim of circumstance, but the facts remain: the collapse began long before the handover. If anything, Ray’s intervention prevented a deeper implosion and gave creditors a chance at recovery — something that would have been impossible under SBF’s leadership.

The “biggest mistake” wasn’t handing over FTX. It was how it was run in the first place.