Sam Bankman-Fried wanted to let retail investors borrow money to trade crypto derivatives: CFTC head
Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, at the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami, Florida, on June 5, 2021.
Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Sam Bankman-Fried, co-founder of bankrupt crypto firm FTX, spent almost a year trying to convince regulators to let him introduce a derivatives product that would allow retail investors to trade with borrowed money, according to Rostin Behnam, chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
In an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Wednesday, Behnam said Bankman-Fried had been lobbying the CFTC to amend the rules so FTX could let users trade derivatives using margin rather than paying upfront. He also wanted to offer the contracts directly to users, without having to go through a futures commission merchant.
“It would have been a non-intermediated, margined model,” said Behnam, who described the proposal as a “very tricky issue from a risk perspective.”
Prior to its bankruptcy filing last week, FTX had a registered derivatives platform with the CFTC called FTX US Derivatives. The platform was a rebranding of LedgerX, a company that FTX acquired in 2021.
FTX US Derivatives is one of the few FTX-related properties that’s not a part of its bankruptcy proceedings and remains operational today. However, it appears to have returned to using the LedgerX brand. If you go to the FTX US Derivatives website, it redirects you to ledgerx.com. And Zach Dexter, who was CEO of FTX US Derivatives, says on his LinkedIn profile that he’s CEO at LedgerX. The platform lets traders buy options, swaps and futures on bitcoin and ethereum.
Starting in Dec. 2021, Bankman-Fried and his senior leadership team made frequent visits to the CFTC to advocate for an amendment to its existing license, Behnam said.
When asked what Behnam thought of Bankman-Fried over the course of meeting with him for nearly a year, the chairman said that the former FTX chief “knows markets, at least he tries to suggest that” and he “wanted to really aggressively have this amendment passed.”
Bankman-Fried’s backers appealed to the CFTC directly to back his plan, Behnam said. They included Fidelity Investments, Fortress Investment Group, and even universities from across the country.
FTX, which was valued at $32 billion by private investors earlier this year, spiraled in spectacular fashion last week as reports of liquidity problems resulted in customers withdrawing billions of dollars a day from their accounts. However, FTX didn’t have the capital to honor those requests because it had used customer deposits for a variety of purposes, including for trading at Bankman Fried’s hedge fund, Alameda Research. Bankman-Fried also disclosed on Twitter on Wednesday that FTX had built up around $13 billion of leverage.
Behnam said his agency’s staffers were still in the process of reviewing FTX’s application for an amended license when FTX and approximately 130 additional affiliated companies, including Alameda and FTX’s U.S. subsidiary collectively filed for bankruptcy protection.
Since then, LedgerX has reportedly withdrawn its application for leveraged derivatives trading.
Before the implosion, Bankman-Fried had been trying to play the role of industry savior as the crypto market sank and lenders and hedge funds went belly up. In May, he also bought a 7.6% stake in trading app Robinhood, which at the time had lost more than three-quarters of its value since its IPO last year. In April, FTX bought a stake in equities exchange IEX.
“If you think about it, in retrospect, with his Robinhood acquisition and his relationship with IEX — it goes beyond crypto what FTX was trying to do,” Behnam said.
WATCH: Authorities eyeing bringing Sam Bankman-Fried to the U.S. for questioning
A dozen Tesla vehicles burned at a store in Toulouse, France. Arson is suspected amid global protests and vandalism attacks against Tesla and Elon Musk.
Last night, a dozen Tesla vehicles burned down at Tesla’s retail and service location in Plaisance-du-Touch near Toulouse, France.
Firefighters arrived on the scene at around 4 a.m. and contained the fire to the vehicles. Eight of them were completely destroyed, and four were greatly damaged. The damages are estimated at over 700,000 euros.
According to the local news (translated from French), the police suspected arson as a hole was found in a fence, and threats had been made over the last few weeks. The Tesla location remained closed all day.
Tesla is currently being protested by anti-fascist groups around the world, especially in the US, where many are targeting Tesla to protest against Elon Musk’s involvement in the US government.
In France, there were a few protests planned, but some extremist groups are calling for widespread arson against Tesla stores:
I won’t share the link to the article since it gives step-by-step instructions on how to burn down Tesla stores without getting caught, but the manifesto explains that they are going after Tesla as a “symbol of capitalism,” although they also list a dozen other reasons including the fact that they think it’s “doable and cheap.”
Electrek’s Take
This is getting nuts. It’s not only dangerous, but it’s also not super effective in achieving the goal they claim to want to achieve.
Have they never heard of insurance? Tesla is having issues selling cars right now. You are burning unsold inventory that they can then claim to their insurance.
Sure, it disrupts their operations for a short period of time, but it’s not worth it.
Their manifesto does say to avoid violence and not to target vehicles owned by individuals – though it doesn’t sound like a strict rule for them, but I think these people are likely going to end up in jail for having achieved nothing.
The protests and boycotts are going strong. You don’t need to burn cars to make yourself heard.
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Environment
Ford F-150 Lightning sales have been falling for months: What’s going on with the EV pickup?
Is Ford’s electric pickup in trouble? Sales have been down for months, and February showed no relief. What’s going on with the Ford F-150 Lightning?
Ford F-150 Lightning sales drop again in February 2025
Ford’s US sales dropped by 9% last month. Although electrified vehicles, including EVs and hybrids, both notched double-digit growth, sales of Ford’s gas-powered (ICE) models, which accounted for over 85% of deliveries, fell nearly 13%.
Hybrids saw higher demand with sales up 27.5% to 15,357, while EV sales increased 15% to 7,326. The Mustang Mach-E was a bright spot with 3,312 models sold in February, up 13% from the prior year.
With 6,841 Mach-Es sold through the first three months of 2025, Ford’s electric crossover SUV remains a top-selling EV in the US.
Ford’s electric pickup didn’t fare as well. F-150 Lightning Sales were down nearly 15% last month with only 2,199 units sold. Through March, Ford has sold 15% fewer Lightning models than it did at this time last year.
Sales of the electric pickup have been slipping for months now. In the final three months of 2024, F-150 Lightning sales were down 10%.
The Lightning, alongside Rivian’s R1T, are no longer the only electric pickups on the market. Ford is facing new competition with the Tesla Cybertruck, Chevy Silverado EV, and GMC Sierra EV, arriving.
According to Cox Automotive, the Tesla Cybertruck slipped past the Lightning to become the fifth best-selling EV in the US last year with nearly 39,000 units sold. Ford’s Lightning was sixth with just over 33,500 models sold.
Ford extended its “Power Promise” promo earlier this year to boost demand, giving EV buyers a Level 2 home charger and other benefits, but Lightning sales are still down.
The American automaker cut Lightning production at its Rouge Electric Vehicle Center last year, citing slower-than-expected demand. A new report from Automotive News claims Ford is now ending a pilot program to stock and distribute EVs through regional hubs after it failed to catch on. It was designed to speed up deliveries.
Although Ford plans to launch a smaller midsize electric pickup, it won’t arrive until at least two more years. With new competition, like the Ram 1500 REV and Volkswagen Scout pickup, hitting the market over the next few years, Ford may find it even harder to attract buyers.
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Costco’s Auto Program recently introduced some new member-only incentives, and the 2025 Volvo EX90 BEV is now on its list.
Volvo is offering Costco Executive Members $2,000 off the 2025 EX90. Costco Gold Star and Business members are eligible for $1,500 off. The incentives are available on all versions of the Volvo EX90 for members who purchase or lease from February 24 to April 30, 2025. It’s the only non-GM EV that’s that’s eligible for an incentive through the EV program.
The offer is compatible with A-Plan pricing for employees, as well as Affinity Pricing for teachers and first responders. Costco members will have had to have been members as of February 23 and be the primary members on the Costco account to qualify.
However, CarsDirect gave the heads up on how buyers can get up to $10,000 off the EX90’s MSRP. As we stated, if you’re a Costco Executive Member, that’s $2,000 off. Then, add the $7,500 EV Lease Allowance and a $500 loyalty discount on leases if you currently own or lease a Volvo or have owned or leased a Volvo within the past six months.
With the destination fee included, the base EX90 MSRP starts at $81,290, so that brings it down to $71,290, a more than 12% discount, a pretty good deal.
The 2025 AWD Volvo EX90, which can seat seven passengers comfortably, has a range of up to 310 miles and is NACS-compatible. It has a 510 hp engine, 110 kWh battery capacity, and can go from 0-60 mph in 4.7 seconds.
Read more: Review: Volvo EX90 is a smooth AWD 7-seat luxury kid-hauler
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