FTX Trading Ltd. CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has resigned. FTX.com (formerly the second-largest crypto exchange in the world), West Realm Shires Services Inc (FTX U.S.), Alameda Research Ltd., and approximately 130 additional affiliated companies (the FTX Group) have filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. John J. Ray III has been appointed CEO of the FTX Group. Even if you’ve never invested a penny in crypto (or even thought about it), the value destruction wrought by SBF is going to have an impact on how you spend your day.
Everything about this is terrible. It’s terrible for the world of decentralized finance. It’s terrible for the broader crypto markets. It is really terrible for both institutional and retail investors. I want to make a snarky comment here or add a punchline, but thousands of regular hard-working people have lost an enormous amount of money. It’s just not funny.
Every pundit, commentator, interested party, and armchair quarterback (myself included) is weighing in. The entire spectrum (from “see, I told you so” to “this too shall pass”) is on display. I don’t offer financial advice, so I won’t speculate on how this will ultimately play out. What I know is that the underlying technology – the actual tools that empower decentralized finance and trustless markets – is not going away, ever. To use an overused metaphor, you can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube. When the dust settles, we will all learn what’s next.
That said, we’ve seen an extraordinary amount of value destruction this year, especially in the crypto industry. Here’s some practical advice (not financial advice): if you own crypto, keep it in a hardware wallet. I’m a fan (again, not financial advice) of Grid+ Lattice, Trezor, or Ledger hardware. No links here; you must go directly to the manufacturer’s website and purchase your hardware wallet directly from the manufacturer.
Once you are confident in your hardware wallet setup, move your coins and tokens to your hardware wallet and do what you will with it. Here’s the advice part: only put your tokens/coins on an exchange when you are actively trading. When the trade is done, put your tokens/coins back in your hardware wallet. For day traders, listen to your grandmother’s advice: do not put all your eggs in one basket. The sad reality is that many day traders did not (and do not) heed this ancient parable. If you are a novice trader, please heed it. Do not put all your crypto in one place – not one wallet, not one exchange. Hopefully the weekend will be less terrible.
Author’s note: This is not a sponsored post. I am the author of this article and it expresses my own opinions. I am not, nor is my company, receiving compensation for it.