The Invisible Architect Behind FTX's Collapse: What We Know About Gary Wang

While Sam Bankman-Fried grabbed headlines and courted celebrities, there was another figure pulling the strings in the shadows—Gary Wang, the enigmatic CTO and co-founder who may hold the key to understanding how FTX imploded.

From Math Camp Rivals to Crypto Billions

Wang’s journey with SBF started at a high school math camp, evolved into an MIT dormitory friendship, and culminated in what would become a multi-billion dollar enterprise. While Bankman-Fried studied physics, Wang built expertise in mathematics and computer science—a combination that would prove critical when they pivoted from Google and Jane Street to the crypto world.

In 2017, when SBF launched Alameda Research from a modest three-bedroom Berkeley apartment, Wang left Google to join him. The pair’s early strategy was brutally simple: exploit price gaps in Asian bitcoin markets, particularly the arbitrage spread between Japanese BTC and global prices. Hong Kong became their base of operations, and from there, they engineered the derivatives exchange that would eventually collapse.

The Coder Nobody Talks About

Here’s where it gets interesting: SBF openly admits he can’t code. “I don’t code. I’m trash,” he told Insider. Meanwhile, Wang was quietly architecting the entire system. Nishad Singh, FTX’s head of engineering, described Wang as “a really good mentor”—someone who knew how to move fast, even when shortcuts were being taken.

But speed came at a cost. Post-collapse, when $400 million vanished in a hack, Wang emerged as a prime suspect. Why? Because he was one of the very few people with “root access” to the exchange’s code—meaning he could theoretically move funds without triggering alarms.

The Four Who Knew

Caroline Ellison, Alameda’s CEO, reportedly named only four people who knew about the decision to secretly transfer customer funds to Alameda. Wang was one of them. He also served on the board of the FTX Future Fund, the charity built around “effective altruism” principles—a darkly ironic detail given what followed.

At 28 years old, Wang made Forbes’ 2022 billionaires-under-30 list with a reported net worth of $5.9 billion. SBF even tweeted his “congratulations,” saying “I couldn’t be prouder.” Within months, both their fortunes evaporated.

The Ghost in the Machine

There’s only one truly memorable photo of Wang circulating online: a shot from FTX’s own website where he sits with his back to the camera, eyes fixed on multiple monitors. It’s almost too perfect as a metaphor—the invisible operator, always working behind the scenes while SBF performed for the cameras.

Wang’s silence amid the chaos is deafening. Unlike Bankman-Fried, who couldn’t resist tweeting his way into legal trouble, Wang has remained largely invisible. Whether that’s strategic brilliance or damning evidence remains one of the biggest unanswered questions in crypto’s most dramatic implosion.