Gary Wang Net Worth, Crypto and NFT Investments

The 2024 net worth of Gary Wang could be virtually zero following the insolvency crisis and bankruptcy that rocked FTX in late 2022. Wang played a crucial role in the crisis that almost set the crypto market on fire. Before the collapse of FTX, the net worth of Gary Wang, according to Forbes, was estimated to be around $4.6 billion.

The former FTX CTO held most of his wealth in FTT tokens. Likewise, his 16% stake in the cryptocurrency exchange (FTX)  he co-founded alongside his MIT roommate, Sam Bankman-Fried also contributed to his wealth. Prior to his involvement with cryptocurrency, Gary Wang worked with Google after completing his MIT program. 

Gary Wang’s Net Worth

Early Life

Gary Zixiao Wang was born around 1993 in China. At the age of eight (8), his family relocated to the United States. He grew up in New Jersey and attended Cherry Hill School East. Around 2011, Wang graduated from the institution. His father usually describes him as a quiet personality who focuses only on math and coding. Meanwhile, his interest in Mathematics took him to the USA/Canada Mathcamp, where he met Sam Bankman-Fried.

Wang, according to Bloomberg, was an active member of the math and chemistry club during his school days. During his sophomore year, he decided to study multi-variable calculus before proceeding to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to study mathematics and computer science. There, he linked up with Sam Bankman-Fried once again. Per various reports, Gary Wang shared the same room with Sam Bankman-Fried and they both belong to Epsilon Theta, a coed fraternity.

Shortly after his graduation from Massachusetts, he secured an engineering role at Google. In his capacity, according to Forbes, Wang helped the firm to build systems to aggregate prices across millions of flights. Around 2017, he decided to resign from his role with Google to reunite with his friend, Sam Bankman-Fried who had just founded Alameda Research. The two alongside other FTX employees became roommates again in a Bahamas house.

FTX

In May 2019, Gary Wang alongside Sam Bankman-Fried founded the Futures Exchange, popularly known as FTX. Initially, the exchange started within Alameda Research, a training firm established by SBF, Caroline Ellison, and some of their other colleagues from Jane Street. FTX started operations with its headquarters in Berkeley, California.

The exchange attracted the attention of Binance CEO, Changpeng Zhao who acquired a 20% stake worth about $100 million in the crypto exchange. The founding team decided to make Gary Wang as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the firm and Sam Bankman-Fried as theChief Executive Officer (CEO). Despite holding such a prominent role in the exchange, Gary Wang kept a very low profile, far away from media attention and interviews. Nevertheless, he was a respectable executive within the firm and he holds about 16% of FTX stake according to Forbes. 

Gary Wang alongside Sam Bankman-Fried focused on expanding the cryptocurrency exchange. Driven by the initiative, the duo leveraged the firm to acquire numerous crypto projects to help equip it with the needed features and tools to thrive among its competitors. As part of this initiative, FTX acquired Blockfolio, a cryptocurrency portfolio tracking app for $150 million. At that time, the exchange enjoyed massive attention within the crypto industry due to the reputation of its founders; Gary Wang and Sam Bankman-Fried.

It was indeed a remarkable period for FTX. It raised not less than $900 million in a funding round from Softbank, Sequoia Capital, and about sixty (60) other investors. Gary Wang and Sam Bankman-Fried leveraged the funding to further strengthen the presence of the exchange, and thus moved its headquarters from Hong Kong to The Bahamas.

Amid the growing interest in its offerings, FTX climbed up to become the third-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume. This feat encouraged its leadership to buy out Changpeng Zhao’s stake in the exchange. It is worth mentioning that some of the funds in the $2 billion buyout deal were paid to the Binance CEO in FTT, a cryptocurrency belonging to FTX. 

In early 2022, FTX, again, dominated the airspace after it announced a $2 billion venture fund. The crypto exchange gained more financial boost after raising $400 million in Series C funding at a $32 billion valuation within that month. Later in February 2022, the United States organ of the exchange, FTX.US announced that the company would offer stock trading to its US customers.

Similarly, FTX announced its intention to develop a gaming division for developers to add cryptocurrency, NFTs, and other blockchain-related assets into video games. Later in the year, it attracted more active users and consequently became the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume. 

FTX Trading Ltd. and its founder Sam Bankman-Fried have put $2 billion into a venture-capital fund to invest in crypto startups https://t.co/GZLYw0sQuJ via @WSJ

— FTX (@FTX_Official) January 14, 2022

Around mid-2022, the crypto market endured a sharp decline in the value of assets as a result of the collapse of LUNA and UST tokens. Regrettably, the crisis affected a host of crypto firms that invested in the tokens, pushing them to the brink of bankruptcy. BlockFi was among the affected firms, and it nearly collapsed until it secured a strategic intervention from FTX. Then, FTX issued a $400 million credit facility to BlockFi. One of the agreements in the deal was an option for FTX to acquire BlockFi for $240 million. 

Barely a few months before its eventual collapse, the U.S. subsidiary of FTX made a $1.42 billion bid to buy the assets of struggling Voyager Digital. In the end, the bid, which included $1.31 billion in Voyager-held cryptocurrency and $111 million in additional consideration, scaled through. However, the implementation of the deal failed to materialize due to the crisis that befell FTX a few months after. 

According to findings, indications about a direct relationship between Alameda Research and FTX first surfaced in September 2022. In a detailed report, Bloomberg discussed how Alameda served as FTX’s market maker during the early period of the crypto exchange. Also, the publication discussed how the firm became FTX’s largest stablecoin depositor, saying the relationship should have been prohibited under regulatory provisions. This issue, as reported, led to the eventual collapse of FTX in November 2022. 

The relationship between Alameda and FTX birthed a full-blown crisis in early November 2022 after reports pointed to a noticeable amount of Alameda Research’s assets being held in FTT. More so, reports revealed that there was $5.1 billion worth of FTT tokens in circulation and that Alameda’s balance sheet held $3.66 billion of unlocked portion of the token. While there was another $2.16 billion of FTT collateral and $292 million of locked FTT for holders, the revelation indicated an impending doom that could wipe out billions of investments in the FTT. Meanwhile, during this period, numerous publications pointed to how the leadership of FTX was desperately looking for how to raise funds to protect its balance sheet. 

These revelations sent shock waves to the crypto community. In reaction, Binance CEO, Changpeng Zhao on November 6, 2023, resolved to sell all the FTT holdings of his exchange. He cited deficiencies in Alameda and FTX balance sheets. A few hours after making the intention known, FTT recorded a huge drop in its value.

As part of Binance’s exit from FTX equity last year, Binance received roughly $2.1 billion USD equivalent in cash (BUSD and FTT). Due to recent revelations that have came to light, we have decided to liquidate any remaining FTT on our books. 1/4

— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) November 6, 2022

In a desperate attempt to help solve the FTX liquidity crisis, the crypto exchange and Binance signed a non-binding agreement to acquire the struggling firm. However, the deal didn’t include FTX.US. As the news of a possible acquisition of struggling FTX dominated the airspace, Zhao began to warn other crypto exchanges from using FTT as collateral, saying the token would experience a high degree of volatility in the coming days. As predicted, FTT endured more decline in its value. Eventually, Binance pulled out from the deal. A few days later, FTX halted withdrawals and consequently turned to Kraken, another business rival for financial bailout. 

Unfortunately, all efforts by FTX leadership to secure a financial bailout failed to come to fruition. Consequently, the firm and all its affiliates resolved to file for bankruptcy.

According to reports, the leadership of the cryptocurrency exchange mismanaged users’ assets worth more than $9 million. This includes various loans to Alameda Research which top executives including Gary Wang were aware of. Also, reports pointed out how Sam Bankman-Fried took loans from the crypto exchange on various occasions. One of these reports alleged that Sam Bankman-fried told Gary Wang to create a secret backdoor connecting FTX and Alameda Research. With the backdoor, Alameda Research reportedly siphoned users’ funds from FTX to finance its investment enterprise. 

Political Donations by FTX Leaders

The leadership of FTX contributed massively to various political donations with users’ funds. These donations contributed to the demise of the cryptocurrency exchange. In 2020, Sam Bankman-Fried was the second-highest donor to Joe Biden’s presidential campaign. The following year, Sam Bankman-Fried and Wang donated more than $50 million to various political campaigns. 

It is worth mentioning that the leadership of the exchange distributed the funds between the two leading political parties in the country. With the donations, they lobbied lawmakers and other top government officials into designing a favorable regulation for the crypto space. Meanwhile, the relationship between the exchange and top politicians in the United States raised questions on why the SEC did not clampdown on the firm for offering unregistered securities. However, the questions surfaced in 2023 after the demise of the exchange as the SEC went on a crackdown against top crypto exchanges like Binance and Coinbase.

They didn't sue FTX. https://t.co/FVgi5l6VcI

— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) June 6, 2023

Sam Bankman-Fried and the leadership of FTX continued their donation spree in 2022 prior to the collapse of the exchange. The firm donated more than $60 million to various campaigns. In May 2022, Sam Bankman-Fried disclosed how he intended to spend $100 million on the 2024 presidential elections. 

Lawsuit

Following the outcries that greeted the collapse of FTX, regulators across the globe, including the United State Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) began to investigate the issue. Around December 2022, the SEC charged Caroline Ellison and Gary Wang with defrauding FTX investors. In the filing, the regulator identified Wang as a major contributor to a dubious scheme.

Also, SEC said the executives acted under the directive of Sam Bankman-Fried to manipulate the price of FTT between 2019 to 2022 by acquiring a voluminous portion of FTT on the open market to inflate its price. Additionally, the regulator said the tokens within that period served as collateral for the loans provided for Alameda Research.

The SEC today charged Caroline Ellison and Gary Wang for their roles in a multiyear scheme to defraud equity investors in the crypto trading platform FTX. Ellison and Wang are cooperating with the ongoing investigation.

— U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (@SECGov) December 22, 2022

Later, both the SEC and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed additional charges against Gary Wang and Caroline Ellison. According to the charges, Gary Wang participated in the “fraud in connection with the sale of digital asset commodities in interstate commerce.”

The regulators cited how Gary Wang designed an FTX software code that aided Alameda to divert customer funds from the crypto exchange. The softcode then permitted Ellison to misappropriate those funds for Alameda’s trading activities. In December 2022, Gary Wang pleaded guilty to the charges. More so, reports indicated that both Gary Wang and Caroline Ellison have continued to cooperate with regulators regarding the investigation around the collapse of FTX. Later, the duo secured their release in a $250,000 bail bond.

Statement of U.S. Attorney Damian Williams on U.S. v. Samuel Bankman-Fried, Caroline Ellison, and Gary Wang pic.twitter.com/u1y4cs3Koz

— US Attorney SDNY (@SDNYnews) December 22, 2022

Is Gary Wang Pro Crypto?

Gary Wang may be quiet but there is no doubt about his passion for crypto. Unlike Sam Bankman-Fried, the co-founder does not like to be the center of attention in the industry. This thus gives an insight as to why he does not feature in interviews to talk about his work or give opinions on issues unfolding in the crypto market. Rather than seek fame like other actors in the industry, Wang preferred to sit alone in the room to code. His associates describe him as a quiet personality who prefers to get lost in coding.

Notably, Wang brought his coding expertise to the crypto industry after co-founding FTX with SBF. His profound contributions accelerated the rise of the crypto empire. According to findings, he was the brain behind the code base of FTX as SBF knows just little about coding. In a 2021 interview with a well-known media, SBF said he was not a programmer and could not have developed the code base of the exchange. He said; “I don’t code. I’m trash. I have not written any of FTX’s code base. That’s all a lot of other really impressive people at FTX. That’s not me at all.”

Wang’s decision to leave Google in a bid to venture into the crypto world speaks volumes about his passion for the industry. In a 2023 interview, his mother confirmed this, stressing that Wang did not venture into the industry or co-founded FTX because of money, but to contribute his coding expertise to the system. She said; “Regarding FTX, he wasn’t interested in the communication or management parts of the company. He was only interested in his part of work, [which was] coding.”

However, he is acknowledged as the developer of a software code that provided enablement for Alameda to divert clients’ funds from FTX. Amid the collapse of FTX, a report from Reuters dominated the airspace, claiming SBF executed a “back door” to FTX so as to abruptly alter financial records and divert funds without alerting others. One of the sources cited in the report claimed this wouldn’t have happened without the knowledge of Wang. According to the source; “If there’s a back door in the infrastructure, it’s hard to think [Gary] wouldn’t know.”

Another source familiar with the issue also made the same assertion, stressing that Wang was among the five FTX executives who had “root access” to the code base. The source was quoted saying; “If it was literally not Gary putting the code in, there’s no way Gary could not have seen it and understood it.”

Although SBF has vehemently denied the allegation, Wang is reported to have confessed to the crime. In his confession, the seasoned programmer said he acted under the directive of SBF to alter the code between 2019 and 2022 in a bid to give Alameda Research “special privileges.” According to his attorney, Ilan Graff; “Gary has accepted responsibility for his actions and takes seriously his obligations as a cooperating witness.” This confession was seen as an act of betrayal by SBF who initially thought he and his longtime friend were on the same page.

Against all odds, Gary Wang was an invaluable asset to FTX and his contributions aided the rise and fall of the empire. Apart from designing the architecture of the exchange, he developed a liquidation system to automatically close accounts of customers running at big losses. Also, he was the brain behind a “cross-margin” feature that allowed customers to harness any cryptocurrency in their accounts as collateral for other crypto purchases.

Therefore, Wang is a top talent that should probably not go missing. Should he make a return to the crypto world at the end of the whole saga, his talent will surely be instrumental to the future of the industry. However, he risks several years in jail with the gravity of the charges initiated against him.

Crypto and NFT Holdings of Gary Wang

Before the collapse of FTX, Gary Wang was a crypto billionaire. His crypto portfolio was valued at around $4 billion. The crisis, according to several publications, plunged the net worth of the former CTO to zero. This is because his investment portfolio was only dominated by his 16% stake in FTX and a share of its FTT tokens. Similarly, his agelong friend, SBF also lost his entire fortune to the saga that worsened market conditions for the crypto industry. Wang held a crypto portfolio consisting of FTT tokens before its eventual demise.

There are no indications that Gary Wang held Bitcoin in his portfolio. Unlike Sam Bankman-Fried and a few other popular Bitcoin investors, the former CTO did not show any known interest in investing in Bitcoin or any other crypto asset. This thus explains why his crypto portfolio was only dominated by the share of his FTT holdings alone. So, it is safe to affirm that Gary Wang only made his initial net worth through the then success of FTX and its native token. It is, however, not surprising that the sudden collapse of the project crippled his wealth.

Similarly, Wang did not personally invest in NFTs. However, he and SBF leveraged FTX to venture into the NFT market in 2021 by launching a minting platform. Then, the minting platform enabled customers to mint their collections on the network of the crypto exchange. Prior to its crash, FTX recorded not less than 1600 NFT collections through the platform.

Crypto Projects Featuring Gary Wang

Unlike SBF, Gary Wang is yet to feature on Wall Street Memes. Recall that amid the crisis which plunged FTX into a state of bankruptcy, the project featured SBF in its humorous memes. This was because he was the face of the exchange, with the likes of Wang behind the scenes. But, the former CTO might still be featured amid his ongoing trial in the United States.

By featuring critical actors in the crypto and stock spheres, Wall Street Memes has maintained a remarkable engagement on social media platforms. As of the time of writing, it enjoys the backing of over five hundred thousand followers on Twitter and Instagram. Certainly, the vast reach of this community has helped the project attract the attention of Elon Musk and a few other eminent personalities.

🤣

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 22, 2023

Around 2021, Wall Street Memes ventured into the NFT market after launching its digital collection, Wall St Bull. Barely an hour after the token went live, it recorded massive patronage, helping the firm to net over $2.5 million in returns. Driven by this success, the project resolved to launch the presale of its native token, $WSM in 2023. A few hours after going live, it raised over $500,000 and has since then made our list of prominent crypto presales in the industry.

At the moment, the presale is still ongoing and has already amassed over $10 million in investment. Certainly, its connection with WallStreetBets and the strength of its community armies have contributed largely to this feat. More so, astute investors see $WSM as an exciting investment and probably the next cryptocurrency to thrive.

In a bid to mark the success, Wall Street Memes recently initiated a $50,000 airdrop. To be a beneficiary of the airdrop, participants must carry out simple tasks like following the project on Instagram and Twitter. For more information on the airdrop and the ongoing presale, visit wallstmemes.com.

Gary Wang’s Net Worth – Our Verdict

Gary Wang is popular for his role in the rise and fall of FTX. Despite being known as a quiet personality, he was the brain behind every software code that was allegedly harnessed to divert customers’ funds from the exchange. Amid the ongoing investigation into the collapse, he has chosen to cooperate with the U.S. prosecutors. As one of the largest holders of FTT and FTX shares, Gary Wang was badly affected by the crisis as he lost his $4.6 million net worth. According to credible sources, his net worth plunged from this figure to zero.

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