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Gary Wang, cofounder and chief technology officer for FTX, focused on a single piece of code during his testimony: “allow_negative.” SBF did not code at FTX, so Wang was responsible for orchestrating all of the technical changes at the company. The code “allow_negative” allowed for Alameda Research’s balances to be negative, a somewhat uninspired name that was never meant for the public’s eyes.
The code basically allowed Alameda Research to have an infinite line of credit, which was ultimately paid by FTX customer funds. In the end, Alameda borrowed $14 billion from FTX, an amount it couldn’t repay. Alameda was always framed by SBF as a liquidity provider in the crypto world, but really, FTX customers were providing the liquidity. This is a key piece of the prosecution’s case, and Wang pointed to the software in place that allowed it to happen.