Bankman-Fried’s ‘Emperor’ Aura Makes Downfall a Crypto Stunner

Sam Bankman-Fried was supposed to be different than the run-of-the-mill crypto types. He was this wunderkind, a 30-year-old with a preternatural gift for math who had quickly built a crypto empire and then shrewdly expanded it during the worst of the industry’s meltdown this summer.

So the sudden collapse of his crown jewel -- the crypto exchange FTX.com, which now needs a bailout from its chief rival, Binance Holdings -- has left crypto investors in stunned disbelief.

If people learned anything from the industry’s spectacular meltdowns in the spring -- including the TerraUSD stablecoin, hedge fund Three Arrows Capital and ...