Ex-Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison’s Google Docs Diary Exposes Struggles Prior to FTX Collapse

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According to the New York Times and several sources familiar with the matter, Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research, maintained a diary on Google Documents that provides a brief glimpse into the challenges she faced before the collapse of FTX. Excerpts from the diary suggest Ellison lacked confidence in her role. After her breakup with Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX co-founder, her enthusiasm for Alameda “significantly decreased.”

Ellison Didn’t Think She Was Well Suited to Lead Alameda Research

Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research, a quantitative trading firm owned by Sam Bankman-Fried, reportedly maintained a diary on Google Documents. The New York Times, in a report dated July 20, 2023, confirmed with four people familiar with the matter that the publication reviewed the documents.

Attorneys involved in the case against Bankman-Fried have allegedly circulated these Google documents in court. Ellison’s diary provides insight into her personal and professional life while working under the now-defunct FTX cryptocurrency empire.

In February 2022, Ellison expressed her dissatisfaction and overwhelmed feelings in regard to her job. “At the end of the day I can’t wait to go home and turn off my phone and have a drink and get away from it all,” she said.

Diary excerpts note a romantic relationship between she and Bankman-Fried, adding an element of “weirdness” and causing “drama.” In one document, Ellison further explained her belief that she was not qualified to serve as Alameda’s chief executive. Ellison wrote:

Running Alameda doesn’t feel like something I’m that comparatively advantaged at or well suited to do.

According to the report, when Bankman-Fried’s $32 billion empire collapsed, Ellison expressed relief that the chaos was ending. “I just had an increasing dread of this day that was weighing on me,” Ellison wrote. “Now that it’s actually happening it just feels great to get it over with.”

Ellison is scheduled to testify against Bankman-Fried in his October trial, along with two other coworkers. In her testimony, published in December 2022, she alleged that Bankman-Fried had instructed her to commingle customer funds since 2019. Furthermore, it’s possible that Ellison underperformed in her role at the quantitative trading firm and may have held an FTX margin position that was negative $1.3 billion in May 2022.

What do you think about Caroline Ellison’s alleged Google Documents diary excerpts? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below.