Are SBF and BALD connected? Crypto Twitter is ablaze with a fresh conspiracy theory suggesting that Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the founder of FTX, might secretly be connected to the controversial BALD memecoin on Base. The BALD token, named humorously after Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, gained an astounding 289,000% within its first 24 hours of trading after its launch on July 30. However, the price later crashed over 85%, leading to accusations of a rug pull, which the anonymous developer denied.
To fuel the suspicions further, some blockchain sleuths examined the developer’s on-chain history and found links to wallets associated with FTX and Alameda Research. This prompted speculation that SBF might be involved in the creation of BALD to recover his losses.
One conspiracy theory from an anonymous DeFi commentator named Downsin suggested that SBF might be trying to make up for potential losses while awaiting trial. However, it should be clarified that SBF is not in prison but under house arrest at his parent’s home in California, awaiting his October trial.
Andrew Thurman, a data editor at Blockworks, added to the rumour by revealing that the same wallet address connected to BALD made numerous transfers to blacklisted USDT addresses and had apparent links to Alameda Research.
Prominent trader, Hsaka, presented a conspiratorial scenario in which the timing of Bald’s launch and subsequent crash might be used against former FTX rival Coinbase by SEC Chair Gary Gensler.
Another commentator, Hype, pointed out eerie similarities between the anonymous developer and SBF, including sentence structures in social media posts. Hype also noted that the wallet connected to BALD had a long history and was among the first voters on proposals on the DeFi platform Sushi Swap.
However, some crypto pundits dismissed the conspiracy theories, arguing that it is unlikely for SBF and BALD to be connected and involved in such a scheme, given his strict bail conditions, which include tight restrictions on internet usage. Crypto influencer Tiffany Fong, who has spoken with SBF since his arrest, clarified that he has been using a flip phone without internet connection and does not have access to Twitter. She tweeted:
“He specifically does NOT have access to Twitter, so the claims that he’s @BaldBaseBald due to ‘sentence structure’ seem like a stretch to me lol”.
So, is Sam Bankman-Fried secretly pulling the strings of the new memecoin BALD? The crypto community remains divided over the conspiracy theories surrounding his potential involvement.
SBF’s FTX continues to hit the headlines with a further report suggesting that it plans to restart its crypto exchange for international customers. The company proposed organising creditors into different classes of claimants, with a pathway for one class to restart the FTX exchange with third-party investors, pending agreement within the group.
The restructuring plan delineates various claimant groups, including offshore exchange customers, U.S. exchange customers, NFT exchange customers, and others. The priority of claims will be determined based on “waterfall priorities,” and each class will receive a pro-rata payout from the remaining pool after the preceding class is compensated. Former customers of FTX.com may have the option to pool their assets to create an “offshore exchange company” or a “rebooted” platform not available in the U.S.
The document suggests that the debtors might offer non-cash consideration, such as equity securities, tokens, or other interests in the new exchange, instead of a cash payout. Notably, the proposed restructuring plan does not include an allowance for holders of FTT (ticker for FTX token), as the token was previously labelled as a security by the SEC.
FTT is up 10.5% and trading at $1.50, according to CoinDesk market data.
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