Five years ago Sam Bankman-Fried hadn’t bought his first bitcoin, but today, he’s one of the youngest billionaires in the world thanks to the cryptocurrency, and one of the most powerful people in the young but fast-growing crypto industry. Bankman-Fried, who has been touted by some as the next Warren Buffett, still drives his Toyota Corolla, however, and has said he plans to give 99% of his fortune away to charity. He’s also been called “Crypto’s White Knight” for his efforts to bail out struggling companies in a painful year for the market and its participants – like Voyager Digital and BlockFi. The founder and CEO of FTX, one of the biggest and fastest-growing cryptocurrency exchanges, created his company to address the fragmented infrastructure across industry platforms. While crypto has come a long way from when it was too challenging for the average person to download a bitcoin wallet, it’s exploded in popularity, but the user experience for investors of any level hasn’t kept up. In this Pro exclusive, CNBC’s Kate Rooney sits down with Bankman-Fried to discuss his path to becoming a billionaire, his vision for the future of the crypto industry, his investing strategy, how he plans to build out his company profitably and more. Tune in to CNBC all day Friday for more on Sam Bankman-Fried.
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