It’s great to be the hero founder. You are the face of the company and its success—and, if you raise enough money—you sometimes even get to be the face on the cover of business magazines. Everyone wants to be around you and hear what you have to say. Famous authors decide to write about the incredible journey that has been your life.
And when everything goes sour, you weren’t that involved at your company anyway. Or at least, that’s what Sam Bankman-Fried is arguing.
SBF’s defense strategy over the last two days as he faces criminal fraud charges seems to have been a last-ditch effort to imply to jurors that he wasn’t really all that aware of all the happenings at FTX—or sometimes that he wasn’t that aware of even his own interviews he had given to reporters.
As my colleague Leo Schwartz wrote from the courthouse yesterday:
[SBF lieutenants Caroline] Ellison, [Gary] Wang, and [Nishad] Singh all testified that Bankman-Fried had directed a series of changes that allowed Alameda to rack up a negative balance and a $65 billion line of credit on FTX, as well as to plow billions of dollars into risky investments—the foundation for the Department of Justice’s fraud allegations.
During Tuesday’s cross-examination, [Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon] asked Bankman-Fried about his involvement in facilitating the $8 billion hole, citing instances from previous testimony where witnesses said they’d discussed the issue with him.
Rather than claiming responsibility, or even awareness, Bankman-Fried repeatedly painted himself as an absentee CEO, instead shifting blame to other executives. Sassoon brought up a conversation Bankman-Fried held with Wang and Singh about Alameda’s mounting debt several months before FTX’s collapse, including a bug in the database that made the hole seem much larger than it actually was. At the time, the issue was serious enough that Bankman-Fried canceled a planned trip to Washington, D.C.
Sassoon asked whether, in his capacity as CEO, he followed up with them to inquire about the multibillion-dollar hole or where it came from. Bankman-Fried said he did not. When pressed further, he said that they were “busy” and he didn’t want to be “distracting.” Bankman-Fried added that he thought his top lieutenants could get “to the bottom of it.”
The SBF trial should be wrapped up before the end of this week. I know you’ll miss these fun here’s-all-the-SBF-drama-you-missed updates I’ve been bringing you in Term Sheet. But now it’s time to see what the jury thinks.
For more coverage of SBF’s testimony this week, read coverage from my crypto colleagues here and here.
WeWork may file for bankruptcy as early as next week…The co-working startup WeWork, which was at its prime valued at $47 billion before it went public, is planning to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as early as next week, people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal. The move comes after disclosures the company made this summer that there was uncertainty over the future of the business and its ability to operate and that WeWork was considering all “strategic alternatives.” When I reached her for comment, a WeWork spokeswoman declined to comment on the WSJ report. ”We do not comment on speculation,” she said.
And now for this month’s cartoon from Ian Foley…
See you tomorrow,
Jessica Mathews
Twitter: @jessicakmathews
Email: jessica.mathews@fortune.com
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Joe Abrams curated the deals section of today’s newsletter.
VENTURE DEALS
- QI Tech, a São Paulo, Brazil-based provider of financial, credit, banking, and anti-fraud services, raised $200 million in Series B funding. General Atlantic led the round and was joined by Across Capital and others.
- Shield AI, a San Diego, Calif.-based defense technology company and developer of an AI aircraft pilot, raised $200 million in Series F funding. U.S. Innovative Technology Fund and Riot Ventures led the round and were joined by ARK Invest and others.
- Kasa Living, a San Francisco-based hospitality platform that connects travelers with apartments, hotels, and homes, raised $70 million in Series C funding. Citi Ventures and FirstMark Capital led the round and were joined by New York Life Ventures, Fireside Ventures, and others.
- SkyCell, a Zug, Switzerland-based developer of technology and products for the pharmaceutical supply chain, raised $57 million in new funding from Catalyst.
- Graylog, a Houston, Texas-based cybersecurity and IT operations provider, raised $39 million in new funding from Silver Lake Waterman, Piper Sandler Merchant Banking, and Harbert Growth Partners.
- Imagine Pharma, a Pittsburgh, Penn.-based biotechnology company researching ways to cure diabetes and expedite wound healing, raised $32.5 million in Series A funding from IP Investors.
- Funnel, a platform offering automation services to renters, property managers, and other teams, raised $32 million in a Series B extension. RET Ventures led the round and was joined by Trinity Ventures and others.
- Engine Biosciences, a Singapore and Redwood City, Calif.-based developer of oncology medicines, raised $27 million in a Series A extension. Polaris Partners led the round and was joined by ClavystBio, Invus, and others.
- Charlie, a Los Angeles, Calif.-based banking services provider for retirees, raised $23 million in Series A funding. TTV Capital led the round and was joined by FPV and others.
- Layr, an Atlanta, Ga.-based platform designed to automate aspects of the insurance process fro brokers and small businesses, raised $10 million in new funding. Cota Capital led the round and was joined by The K Funds, HCSM Ventures, Sandbox Industries, and Flyover Capital.
- GreenLite, an Austin, Texas-based platform designed to accelerate the permit approval process for construction, raised $8 million in seed funding. Trust Ventures led the round and was joined by LiveOak Ventures and Chicago Ventures.
- ESG Flo, a Houston, Texas-based ESG platform for industrial, manufacturing, and infrastructure companies, raised $5.3 million in seed funding. Rho ignition and Tola Capital led the round and was joined by Bain & Company and Contour Venture Partners.
- Verqor, a Mexico City, Mexico-based company that provides financing to farmers, raised $4 million in pre-Series A funding. Yara Growth Ventures led the round and was joined by Accion Venture Lab, SP Ventures, Glocal, and Amplifica Capital.
- Sober Sidekick, a Bentonville, Ark.-based peer support platform for people who struggle with addiction, raised $2 million in seed funding. The American Heart Association and Ikigai Growth Partners led the round and were joined by Nina Capital.
- Playbite, a St. Louis, Mo.-based mobile game developer, raised $1 million in new funding. Grishin Robotics led the round and was joined by M25, Tundra Ventures, Capitalize VC, and Magic Fund.
PRIVATE EQUITY
- Offen Petroleum, a portfolio company of Court Square Capital, acquired the wholesale business of W. Douglass Distributing, a Sherman, Texas-based propane, lubricant, and wholesale and commercial fuel businesses. Financial terms were not disclosed.
- Percheron Capital acquired SafeBasements, a Golden Valley, Minn.-based provider of foundation repair and basement waterproofing services. Financial terms were not disclosed.
EXITS
- KKR acquired Simon & Schuster, a New York City-based publishing house, from Paramount for $1.62 billion.
- Accenture agreed to acquire 6point6, a London, U.K.-based digital transformation consultant firm, from ICG. Financial terms were not disclosed.
- Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners agreed to acquire Energy Exemplar, a North Adelaide, Australia-based provider of simulation and planning software for energy and financial markets, from The Riverside Company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
- DIF Capital Partners and EDF Invest agreed to acquire Fjord1, a Florø, Norway-based ferry operator, from Vision Ridge Partners and Havila Holding. Financial terms were not disclosed.
- Madison Dearborn Partners acquired Shaw Development, a Bonita Springs, Fla.-based designer, manufacturer, and assembler of components for diesel exhaust fluid applications, from Monomoy Capital Partners. Financial terms were not disclosed.
OTHER
- Society Brands acquired Club EarlyBird, a Selbyville, Indiana-based morning energy drink brand. Financial terms were not disclosed.
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