Many so-called Sam Coins have staged a surprising recovery this month, despite the fact that FTX crypto exchange is still offline while it goes through bankruptcy proceedings and its former big boss – Sam Bankman Fried – is being tried for a variety of criminal charges, including allegedly scamming FTX clients and investors.
As the crypto market shows signs of vigor in the last few weeks, the value of crypto assets tethered to the now-defunct FTX exchange and promoted by Bankman-Fried, has increased.
Following Bankman-Fried’s arrest, there were worries about the survival of Sam Coins, such as FTT, Solana, Oxygen and Maps, but their prices have since made an impressive ascent.
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. Image: Euronews
Bankman-Fried’s Sam Coins Advancing
FTX’s native token, FTT, occupied an important spot on Alameda Research’s (SBF’s cryptocurrency trading firm) balance sheet, which exacerbated November’s major sell-off as investors evaluated fresh information of the connection between Bankman-Fried’s trading arm and FTX.
According to Coingecko data, FTT is up 160% this month after shedding almost all of its value in 2022. The coin is now trading at $1.93, which is a far cry from its recent high of $51.68 from late March 2022.
FTT’s value may have been influenced by rumors that the platform’s operators were assessing the possibility of re-launching the beleaguered FTX.
According to a recent New York Times report, Bankman-Fried planned a strategy with FTX’s sister company, Alameda Research, to boost the prices of certain Sam Coins.
In December, FTX was down around 95% over the previous three months. The token dipped below $1 for the first time one week prior.
Solana. Image: Binance Academy
SBF’s Role In Coins’ Price Surge
Solana, a blockchain ecosystem that garnered prominent support from Bankman-Fried, was previously considered a competitor to Ethereum.
SOL has climbed from a December low of $9.60 to $23.59 on Tuesday, inching closer to the $32 average level it lingered at before FTX’s breakdown.
Other Sam Coins like Oxygen is associated with a decentralized financial protocol, whereas Maps is affiliated with a navigation service. The values of the two cryptos have increased by more than 50 percent this month, although they remain a sliver of their 2021 peaks.
Bankman-Fried played a significant role in the price increase of these lesser-known cryptocurrencies, according to market observers.
As a means of ensuring the profitability of FTX and its subsidiaries, SBF allegedly approached project developers and insisted that they make their trading appearances on FTX.
According to accounts, Alameda would then purchase some of these newly listed coins to jack up their value.
Crypto total market cap at $976 billion on the daily chart | Chart: TradingView.com
Growing Optimism Around Sam Coins
The growing optimism around these SBF-promoted crypto assets mirrors a larger surge in the crypto market. Despite the crypto space’s unexpected twists and turns, many are unfazed. In fact, more people nowadays want to try their hand on bitcoin and other popular digital currencies.
Meanwhile, the exuberance around these Sam Coins indicates, one way or another, a growing desire for riskier investments, which may be driven by hopes that the U.S. central bank would soon stop raising interest rates, and macroeconomic factors won’t make a huge dent on sentiment around cryptocurrencies.
The unstable crypto landscape lost billions at the time of FTX’s crash, sliding below $1 trillion in value. In November last year, the cryptocurrency exchange confronted a cash crunch and sought bailout money.
Rival exchange Binance explored purchasing a stake of the company, but decided against it.
Featured image from The VR Soldier