What we’re reading (11/11)
“FTX Files For Bankruptcy, CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Resigns” (Wall Street Journal). “Just a week ago, FTX was an industry titan, and Mr. Bankman-Fried its smiling public face. In January, FTX raised money from Silicon Valley’s most sophisticated investors, at a valuation of $32 billion. A few weeks ago, Mr. Bankman-Fried was publicly musing about raising more, to get even bigger.”
“The Crypto Ponzi Scheme Avenger” (New York Times). “Dozens of HyperFund investors have left withering takedowns on the company review site Trustpilot. One person who said he had lost $10,000 wrote, ‘For the love of God — stay away from this scam.’ A Facebook page called ‘HyperVerse Scam — Now What!?’ has 6,200 members.”
“Disney Plans Targeted Hiring Freeze And Job Cuts, According To A Memo From CEO Bob Chapek” (CNBC). “‘We are limiting headcount additions through a targeted hiring freeze,’ CEO Bob Chapek said in a memo to division leads sent Friday and obtained by CNBC. ‘Hiring for the small subset of the most critical, business-driving positions will continue, but all other roles are on hold. Your segment leaders and HR teams have more specific details on how this will apply to your teams.’”
“Silicon Valley Layoffs Are A Reminder That Your Job Won’t Love You Back” (Vox). “There have been about 118,000 tech layoffs this year, as economic headwinds like high interest rates and low ad spending jar the industry, according to company downsizing tracker Layoffs.fyi. While that’s not enough to seriously dent the millions of US tech jobs out there, it’s an unwelcome occurrence to tech workers who have gotten used to more than a decade of relative stability.”
“Inside The $1.5 Billion Paul Allen Sale, The Most Expensive Art Auction Of All Time” (Vanity Fair). “I was trying to do the math in my head, and with the number of eight-and-nine-figure lots I realized, yes, with fees, that would add up to hit the elusive 10-figure mark. The world had its first billion-dollar art sale. The night was barely halfway over. The grand total ended up at $1.5 billion, making it the highest-grossing auction of all time. It nearly doubled the previous record, and smashed the record for most valuable private collection, soaring past the mark by more than half a billion. It’s possible no sale of physical objects—not counting any corporate takeover or any M&A megadeals—has ever come close to this total. Accounting for inflation, collectors on Wednesday spent nearly four times what Thomas Jefferson dropped on the Louisiana Purchase.”
