According to chief executive officer Vlad Tenev, hybrid exchange Robinhood (NASDAQ:HOOD) has no direct exposure to Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF)’s crumbing crypto empire.
SBF, who is the head of crypto exchange FTX (the second-largest digital asset exchange up until this week) and venture fund Alameda Research, looks certain to lose his status as a crypto top dog after revelations emerged over the mishandling of customer funds.
Binance initially agreed to buy FTX out, but has now reneged on the offer in what is likely to be the exchange's deathblow.
"Despite SBF having an equity stake in Robinhood, we have no direct exposure to Alameda, FTX, or any of its entities," wrote Tenev.
Tenev noted “elevated trading volumes and elevated crypto inflows” into Robinhood amid a “flight to safety”.
Despite SBF having an equity stake in Robinhood, we have no direct exposure to Alameda, FTX, or any of its entities, and we've confirmed with our partners that they don't have material exposure either.That’s all well and good, but with a 7.5% stake in the company, SBF is an influential Robinhood equity holder.— VLAD (@vladtenev) November 10, 2022
SBF has been removed from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, suggesting that his personal wealth has fallen by at least 90% in recent days, sparking speculation that he is poised to hit the sell button.
As such, Nasdaq-listed HOOD shares have crashed 30% to US$8.40 this week.