The bankruptcy is a stunning fall from grace for the 30-year-old Mr. Bankman-Fried, who cultivated a reputation as a boy genius with a host of endearing quirks, including a habit of sleeping on a beanbag at the office. At one point, he was one of the richest people in the industry, with an estimated fortune of $24 billion. He hobnobbed with actors, professional athletes and former world leaders.Mr. Bankman-Fried’s problems started over the weekend, when the chief executive of Binance, the largest crypto exchange, suggested publicly that FTX might be on shaky financial footing. A rush of customers tried to withdraw their crypto holdings from the platform, and FTX was unable to meet the demand.On Tuesday, Mr. Bankman-Fried said he had struck a deal to sell FTX to Binance. But after reviewing the company’s financial documents, Bi …
