Nansen CEO Alex Svanevik identified that if Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) had accomplished the acquisition of FTX in November 2022, it will have turn out to be some of the priceless enterprise portfolios within the historical past of expertise by now.
Sam Bankman Fried’s private and FTX-related investments, which embrace an 8% stake in Anthropic, 5% in Cursor and publicity to SpaceX, are actually price greater than $100 billion, in keeping with a Forbes evaluation launched in Could.
What precisely did CZ stroll away from?
Earlier than the collapse of FTX, the portfolio Bankman Freed had constructed was surprisingly sturdy. Based on Forbes journal and different reviews, this included an 8% stake in Anthropic, a 5% stake in Cursor, publicity to SpaceX, and different holdings akin to Robinhood and Solana.
In November 2022, Binance terminated the acquisition settlement with the corporate, and instantly after that, the trade has collapsed.
Had Binance accomplished the acquisition of FTX, these investments would have been moved to Binance’s stability sheet.
However as an alternative, they had been despatched to chapter courtroom, the place FTX Actual Property offered them to repay collectors. Cursor shares had been offered again to the founders in 2023 for simply $200,000, however SpaceX acquired Cursor shares at a valuation of $60 billion, so the shares are actually price about $3 billion.
FTX invested roughly $500 million in Anthropic. The AI firm is now valued at greater than $600 billion, with some estimates pegging it nearer to $900 billion. Every share might now be price greater than $70 billion.
Mr. Bankman Fried had amassed about $60 million when SOL was about $8, and was price about $21 billion at its peak.
Nansen CEO Alex Svanevik Portfolio breakdown has been posted. In a letter to X on June 19, he referred to as the choice “a uncommon CZ failure in hindsight.”
Rory O’Driscoll, a associate at Scale Enterprise Companions, stated Bankman Freed had an uncanny potential to select successful corporations even earlier than the AI increase.
Why did CZ pull out of the acquisition settlement with FTX?
Memoirs of Mr. Zhao“Cash Freedom,” printed in April 2026, describes Bankman Freed calling folks in November 2022 and demanding billions of {dollars} “as casually as if he had been ordering a bologna sandwich.”
Mr. Zhao signed a non-binding letter of intent (LOI), however stated he had no intention of truly continuing with the deal as a result of he had no real interest in proudly owning FTX or supporting SBF. He stated the LOI is “purely a formality” so his workforce can have a look at FTX’s numbers and contemplate whether or not it helps shield clients.
The deal fell aside inside 72 hours, and Binance publicly withdrew from the acquisition on November 9, 2022, citing “alleged mishandling of buyer funds and investigation by U.S. authorities businesses.”
Zhao additionally writes in regards to the time Alameda Analysis CEO Caroline Ellison publicly supplied to purchase again Binance. $FTT She made a “deadly mistake” when she held the tokens at $22 every.
By displaying the market the place the worth ground is, skilled merchants began shorting the token, pulling the token under that degree. $FTT It fell from $22 to $5 in three days, and about $6 billion in withdrawals left FTX.
Throughout an look on the All In Podcast in February 2026, Chao talked about that Bankman Freed was lobbying Binance in Washington, D.C., however claimed that he nonetheless stood by his choice to promote his stake in Binance. $FTT The possession was not a deliberate assault.
Sarcastically, Binance’s personal $FTT Its holdings, as soon as price $580 million, had been “principally nugatory” after the collapse, Zhao wrote.
