In a recent interview, the CEO of FTX stated he would be interested in buying established financial institutions if the opportunity arose.
Sam Bankman-Fried is nothing if not aspirational. The 29-year-old CEO of crypto-exchange FTX has his sights set on the upper echelon of financial institutions. Bankman-Fried told the Financial Times that if his crypto exchange rises to heights greater than rivals Coinbase or Binance, he would consider purchasing a blue-chip financial institution. United States banking behemoths Goldman Sachs and Exchange CME Group are on Bankman-Fried’s shortlist.
The CEO said that if his exchange becomes the biggest in the world, buying Goldman Sachs or CME, “is not out of the question at all.” As it stands, FTX has a long way to go to be a true competitor to Coinbase or Binance, two of the biggest in the world. Even despite Binance’s recent issues with regulators, Bankman-Fried believes that if FTX follows the right path, it could take hold of a position atop the crypto exchange mountain.
FTX reaching for the stars
While FTX is not currently at the level of Coinbase or Binance, Bankman-Fried’s crypto exchange is valued at around $20 billion. Meanwhile, Coinbase is valued at around $76 billion dollars and CME is valued around the same price as Coinbase, with Goldman Sachs worth around $140 billion.
So, while the idea behind what Bankman-Fried is saying could be viewed as a bit out there, on paper, the numbers support the possibility. From a pure numbers standpoint, Coinbase could theoretically afford to purchase CME Group today. While FTX has been growing steadily, it still has a lot of work to do.
A new round of funding is on the horizon for FTX with the CEO stating funds will be earmarked for Mergers and Acquisitions. This appears to align with his long-term plan for FTX. Additionally, funds will be used to optimize the retail investor share of the market. When Bankman-Fried was asked about FTX going public, the young billionaire responded, “We are not actively looking to list, but we want to be in a position to go ahead if we want to.”
FTX is backed by Alameda Research, also founded by Bankman-Fried. Alameda is a quantitative crypto trading firm that trades anywhere from $1 billion to $10 billion a day.
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