SBF Says He Used Alameda Research Profits to Buy Solana at $0.20

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) makes a shocking revelation about his early investment in Solana, saying that he bought SOL at $0.20 per unit.

Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the former CEO of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, has made a shocking revelation about his early investment in Solana (SOL).

Bankman-Fried, who recently took the witness stand at his ongoing trial in a Manhattan courthouse, disclosed that he purchased SOL when a unit was changing hands at $0.20. Notably, SBF did not reveal how much SOL he acquired at $0.20.

SBF Claims He Invested in SOL Using Alameda Profit 

However, the founder of FTX claimed he invested in SOL using Alameda Research’s profit and not customers’ deposits, as alleged by U.S. prosecutors.

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It bears mentioning that SBF’s statement contradicts previous claims by FTX co-founder Gary Wang. In the early phase of SBF’s trial, Wang testified earlier this month that the exchange used customers’ funds to settle loans obtained by Alameda Research.

Top media outlet Wall Street Journal (WSJ) also reported that FTX employees discovered a secret backdoor that Alameda Research exploited to withdraw billions of dollars from the exchange.

Meanwhile, many crypto enthusiasts have been stunned at the fact that SBF invested an undisclosed sum in SOL when a unit was sold at $0.20.

With SOL currently worth $33.61, the founder of FTX could be sitting on a massive profit if he still holds the asset.

Solana’s Massive Growth

Since its launch in 2020, Solana has recorded tremendous growth in terms of adoption and utility. Notable venture capitalists, including Andreessen Horowitz, Alameda Research, and Polychain Capital, have invested in Solana.

On November 6, 2021, a unit of SOL spiked to an all-time high of $259.96, according to CoinGecko data. However, the price of SOL took a major hit following the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange. SOL is currently among the top-performing crypto assets, up 239.7% year-to-date (YTD).

Interestingly, prominent investment management firm VanEck recently gave a bullish forecast regarding SOL. VanEck predicted that SOL could surge to a whopping $3,211 by 2030. Furthermore, the asset manager also indicated $10 as its bear case prediction for SOL in 2030.

Deaton Raises Questions About Solana

In other news, Attorney John Deaton raised questions about the technical capabilities of Solana, asking the crypto community whether they still refer to the blockchain as “ETH Killer.”

What are people’s honest thoughts about #SOL today? I know Caroline Ellison called it the VC’s Blockchain during the SBF trial and I know SBF/FTX was a huge proponent before the collapse. I also know VanEk recently said by 2030 it will be between $10 and $3K. Is it still called…

— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) October 29, 2023

It is worth mentioning that several crypto enthusiasts have been referring to Solana as “Ethereum Killer” due to its ability to process transactions faster at relatively lower fees.

However, the title is fading away as a result of the multiple technical glitches Solana has experienced over the years.

Notably, Solana has suffered network outages that have sometimes left many users stranded. These technical issues prompted Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson to compare the network to an old Nintendo console that requires fixing.