Infinite Storm: The Rise and Fall Symphony of the FTX Empire
Back in the year when Michael Lewis had just completed a new book related to the pandemic, he was on the lookout for the subject of his next book. He wanted to find someone with a unique personality and a compelling story—similar to Billy Beane in “Moneyball,” Michael Burry in “The Big Short,” and Brad in “Flash Boys”—all individuals who dared to go against the mainstream and forge their own paths.
At that moment, Brad called Michael to introduce him to a new friend. Michael learned that there was a platform in the cryptocurrency world called FTX, which had originated in Hong Kong and was now extremely popular. The owner of FTX was named SBF, who, in his twenties, had already become a billionaire. Some even predicted that he would be the first person on Earth to reach a net worth of over a trillion dollars.
However, like most of us, Michael initially had little understanding of cryptocurrency and had never heard of SBF. During their first meeting, he encountered a young man who took Uber, had messy hair, and wore shorts and a T-shirt, along with loose white socks and worn-out New Balance shoes. There was an indescribable mix of intelligence and sincerity about him. After walking and chatting with him for an entire afternoon, Michael immediately decided that his next book would be about SBF’s story. “This guy is too special!” Michael remarked.
SBF told Michael that he was a believer in Peter Singer’s “Effective Altruism” and that his entry into finance was to make money. He aimed to earn “infinite” wealth to solve “crises threatening human existence,” such as climate change and famine. Oh, and he also considered Trump a threat to humanity, so he actually went to ask Trump how much money he would need to withdraw from the election.
What Michael didn’t know at the time was that a storm surrounding this young man, SBF, was forming. Just as Michael was finishing his interview and struggling to find the right words to write, news broke out: FTX declared bankruptcy, millions around the world were affected, and Taiwan was a disaster area! SBF’s ideal of “infinite wealth” had turned into an “infinite storm.”
It was also at this moment that the media was surprised to discover that Michael was writing SBF’s story. Michael was already a bestselling author in the finance world, with works like “Liar’s Poker,” “The Fifth Risk,” “The Big Short,” and “Moneyball,” which have all been adapted into films and are still read by finance novices today. Over the course of more than a year of interviews, Michael had the rare opportunity to observe SBF up close, watching how he amassed over $20 billion in wealth at an unprecedented speed. Then, when FTX collapsed and employees fled the Bahamas in panic, Michael was also on the scene witnessing the entire process. Everyone wanted to know how he would narrate the story of FTX, how he would evaluate SBF, and how he would reinterpret this financial event.
Upon receiving the manuscript of “Infinite Storm,” I devoured the book in one sitting like binge-watching a series. Each story within revealed the inner workings of the so-called “crypto world,” including the actions and words of figures in the news (such as Zhao Changpeng). Just like reading “The Big Short,” I saw Michael unraveling the complexities of cryptocurrency trading, effective altruism, bankruptcy procedures, and the judicial system, interpreting one of the most bizarre cases in financial history.
Oh, and I never expected that this shocking global case would begin in Michael’s narrative with a Taiwanese girl named “Tian Wenxin”…
By Saturday, those investors who had spoken with SBF on Thursday could no longer reach him.
“Maybe he threw his phone away,” speculated one source.
“Michael Lewis has been flying around with him recently,” someone added.
“Perhaps we will have to wait for him to publish his book to understand the complete story.”
~ Reporter John Erlichman
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Selected as a Best Book of the Year by The New Yorker
Financial Times’ Best Book on Cryptocurrency of the Year
★★★ Highly Recommended ★★★
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