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FTX, Con Men, and the Power of Grift

FTX, Con Men, and the Power of Grift

Now & Then · CAFE

December 7, 202253m 7s

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Show Notes

Following the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX and the undoing of its CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, Heather and Joanne discuss the businesspeople and money-makers who have fallen hardest throughout American history. How do we find the line between the “con man” and the capitalist? 


Heather and Joanne talk about the mid-1800s origins of the “con man,” the loss of belief in financiers during the Great Depression, and the Keating Five scandal of the late 1980s. 


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For references & supplemental materials, head to: cafe.com/now-and-then/ftx-con-men-and-the-power-of-grift/


Now & Then is presented by CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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