--- title: "Coinbase CEO Says Only a “Gullible Person” Wouldn’t Think FTX Stole User Funds" description: "Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong says former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried stole \"customer money used in his hedge fund, plain and simple.\"" date: "2022-12-05" modified: "2022-12-05" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/coinbase-ceo-ftx-stole-user-funds" categories: - "Blockchain" - "Future Society" tags: - "coinbase" - "cryptocurrency exchanges" - "ftx" - "the digest" --- # Coinbase CEO Says Only a “Gullible Person” Wouldn’t Think FTX Stole User Funds ![Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong says former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried stole "customer money used in his hedge fund, plain and simple."]() *\Image: Getty Images/Futurism\* ## Messy Accounting As the dust starts to settle following crypto exchange FTX's [dramatic implosion]() last month — an event that wiped out a $32 billion valuation in a matter of days and even took down [other exchanges]() with it — competing exchanges are starting to actively distance themselves from disgraced former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. "I don't care how messy your accounting is (or how rich you are)," [argued]() Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong over the weekend, "you're definitely going to notice if you find an extra $8 billion to spend." "Even the most gullible person should not believe Sam's claim that this was an accounting error," he added. ## Fund House Mirror Armstrong, who leads the second biggest exchange in the world by trading volume, was referring to Bankman-Fried leaving a glaring $8 billion hole in FTX's books, which he [told *Bloomberg*]() he had "misaccounted." "It's stolen customer money used in his hedge fund, plain and simple," Armstrong [tweeted](). Worse yet, [*Reuters* reports]() that FTX may have secretly funneled $10 billion worth of funds to sister hedge fund Alameda Research, also cofounded by Bankman-Fried. According to the report, between $1 billion and $2 billion in client money is still unaccounted for. "We didn't secretly transfer," Bankman-Fried said of those funds. "We had confusing internal labeling and misread it." ## Trust Us In short, FTX's collapse has shaken the cryptocurrency industry to its core, which has led to Coinbase and plenty of other exchanges distancing themselves while trying to paint themselves as a more trustworthy alternative. Case in point: a full-page Coinbase ad in *The Wall Street Journal* titled "[Trust Us]()" and published less than a week after FTX filed for bankruptcy. Meanwhile, Bankman-Fried has been on an "[apology tour]()," claiming that he "unknowingly commingled funds" between FTX and Alameda" during a livestreamed [*New York Times* interview]() last week. But whether his mea culpas will make for a compelling enough case in court remains to be seen. **READ MORE:** [Coinbase CEO Rejects FTX ‘Accounting Error,’ Says Funds Were Obviously ‘Stolen’]() \[*Decrypt*\] **More on FTX:** *[Glitzy Crypto Award Show Gets Weird When Host Keeps Roasting Guests For Dismal Failure]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()