Crypto Kingpins

Homegrown: OKC dives into a case of domestic terrorism from the past that’s really a warning about the future. 

Back in 1995, there was a disaster that should have prepared us for January 6th and the political violence that we’re seeing today: the Oklahoma City Bombing.

Journalist Jeffrey Toobin reveals the story behind Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City Bombing, and right-wing extremism in America - how a decorated army veteran became consumed with rage, how he somehow went underground and built a bomb that damaged fifty blocks in a modern city, and how everything that led to the horror of April 19th, 1995 is still very present in America. 

Homegrown: OKC is a USG Audio podcast produced by Western Sound and Esmail Corp. Based on the book “Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Rightwing Extremism” by Jeffrey Toobin. For more episodes of Homegrown: OKC, please visit here.

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As another kingpin falls, what’s next for crypto?

At the start of November, Sam Bankman-Fried was convicted. After weeks of complex testimony, the jury took just four hours to find him guilty of defrauding customers and investors out of billions of dollars. Things looked like they couldn’t get anymore dramatic–- until they did. Just a few weeks later, with Sam awaiting sentencing, a second kingpin was also toppled. In a sweeping settlement with the Department of Justice, Changpeng Zhao, or CZ, pled guilty to failing to prevent money laundering and stepped down as CEO of Binance. In this episode, host Tom Wright delves into the downfall of two of the biggest names in crypto. With help from crypto investigator James Block, entrepreneur Margaux Avedisian, and Wall Street Journal reporter Angus Berwick, Tom unravels the details of CZ’s plea deal with regulators and the fate of Binance, and asks: what’s next for crypto?

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“He is somebody who likes double or nothing coin flips – and this is basically his last coin flip.”

Since kicking off on October 3, the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried has generated headlines around the world. It’s produced hours of witness testimony and endless reams of evidence – but what do you really need to know? In this bonus episode, managing producer Megan Dean talks to reporter Tracy Wang about the biggest bombshells to hit the courtroom during the prosecution, including the “jaw-dropping” testimony of former Alameda Research CEO, Caroline Ellison. Plus, with Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers likely to launch his defense in the coming days, we hear from federal criminal defense attorney Ken White on their potential strategy – and what could happen if Sam takes the witness stand.

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With FTX’s debts spiraling and Alameda’s books a blackhole, Sam needs to bring in more cash fast to keep the two companies afloat. But CZ has been biding his time — and he’s done tolerating Sam’s backstabbing. When CoinDesk publishes an explosive article exposing Alameda’s financials, CZ seizes the opportunity for revenge, sending shockwaves through the market and triggering panic. As investors scramble to retrieve their assets, Sam is hit with charges of wire fraud, securities fraud, and intent to defraud the U.S. government.

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Life’s a beach for Sam — he moves FTX to the Bahamas just as China starts cracking down on crypto and lands a jaw-dropping $200 million funding deal with Sequoia Capital. He attracts the backing of Wall Street financier and one-time Trump White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci and throws a glitzy conference featuring former presidents and celebrities. But as FTX's popularity soars, financial irregularities begin to emerge, and the truth behind Sam’s empire starts to unravel.

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Sam spends hundreds of millions to buy name recognition and political influence for FTX in the U.S. — and suddenly his upstart crypto exchange is everywhere, from the Miami Heat’s arena to the halls of Congress. Football stars, models, and TV personalities endorse the FTX brand. It’s part of Sam’s plan to pitch himself as the squeaky-clean face of American crypto, in contrast to the Chinese-Canadian CZ, whom Sam paints as a foreign spy. But Sam’s got a secret. 

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Sam moves Alameda Research’s headquarters from Berkeley to Hong Kong to take advantage of the unregulated crypto market there. Caroline comes along for the ride, struggling to manage the stress of he r new job. Sam pitches investors on a new idea: a crypto exchange called FTX that will offer all kinds of risky crypto products. After all, why bet in the casino when you can own it?

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Starting his career at a secretive Wall Street firm, Sam learns to gamble and is praised for taking big risks. He embraces Effective Altruism, a movement aimed at doing “the most good,” and starts “earning to give” big donations to charity. He strikes out on his own to found a trading firm, Alameda Research, and exploit bitcoin price differences between Japan and the US — but is his origin story of immense arbitrage profits really all it’s cracked up to be? When staff quit in protest over his ethics, Sam doubles down and turns to an old friend from his Wall Street days to serve as his loyal lieutenant: Caroline Ellison.

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Two cryptocurrency titans, Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, and Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, the founder of Binance, face off in an epic struggle for the soul of crypto – a battle that will result in eight felony charges and a $32 billion meltdown just a few years later. When they first meet in Singapore in 2019, Sam approaches CZ as a mentor — but soon turns on him to build wealth and political influence.

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New episodes every Tuesday.

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