Tiffany Fong is a social media personality, YouTube content creator, and crypto enthusiast who has gained popularity for her videos on cryptocurrency and blockchain. She is also known for her interviews with some of the most prominent figures in the crypto industry, including Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder of FTX, a crypto exchange. ^[1][2]

Early Life & Education

Tiffany Fong was born on March 19, 1994, in Nevada, USA. She grew up in Las Vegas & graduated from the University of Southern California in 2017 with a degree in International Relations and Global Business. She also obtained a certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language in 2018. ^[2][3]

Career

Fong started out as a Marketing Intern and Research Assistant at Purdue Marion & Associates and USC Annenberg Innovation Lab respectively. She has also worked as a Public Relations intern, Creative Executive intern, and an Artist Management Assistant. She was a Volunteer Crisis Counselor at the Crisis Text Line from 2020 to 2022. ^[2]

Crypto & Blockchain

Fong's journey into the crypto space began in 2022 when she invested over $200,000 worth of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies into Celsius Network. The platform promised interest rates of up to 18% for its depositors. However, in June 2022, Celsius suspended withdrawals due to the market's unfavorable conditions, which led to the company's bankruptcy declaration the following month. This unfortunate event took place after Fong's rant went viral. ^[5]

“I was going through my first real breakup, so I was already incredibly depressed,” Fong recounts. “Then I lost the majority of my life savings. I just wanted somewhere to vent about my losses.”^[3]

She started posting about her Celsius misadventures on YouTube and Twitter and that was how she began her YouTube journey. ^[4]

Tiffany Fong has also collaborated with other crypto influencers and platforms, such as CoinDesk, Crypto Wendy O, BitBoy Crypto, and Crypto Banter. She has also attended various crypto events and conferences, such as Consensus, Bitcoin 2023, and Blockchain Week. ^[5]

Relationship with Sam Bankman-Fried

Fong and SBF first connected when her first Celsius leak caught his attention.

"Sam Bankman-Fried started following me on Twitter that day. I was new to “crypto Twitter,” so I assumed SBF found me through the leaked Celsius Network all-hands meeting I shared" - she wrote on her blog
"Sam and I exchanged a couple of brief messages that day, but didn’t talk in DMs again for several week"^[6]

Fong and Bankman-Fried reconnected in November 2022, when his FTX empire imploded. On November 11, 2022, the day FTX filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Fong reached out to Bankman-Fried:

“I just said something like, ‘Hey, obviously, there’s been a lot of news about FTX. Would you be willing to chat with me and tell me your side of the story?’” recalls Fong. “I really did not think that Sam would ever get back to me.”^[5]

He responded and agreed to an interview with her which Fong published on her YouTube channel on November 29, 2022. ^[6]

“I asked him if he regretted that first phone call with me [and] what he told me about the dark donation since that kind of blew up in his face,” Fong says. “But no, he’s never expressed regret for anything he said to me.” - Tiffany stated^[3]

During SBF's months of house arrest with an ankle monitor, Tiffany Fong visited him several times at his parent's house in Palo Alto. She noted that despite his legal troubles, they discussed business and he appeared "surprisingly optimistic." In October 2023, Fong had an exchange outside the courthouse with Bankman-Fried’s mother, Barbara Fried and she tweeted:

"Barbara Fried (SBF’s mom) yelled at me outside of court today what the fuck"^[7]

The billionaire Elon Musk came to Fong’s defense and responded:

"Can’t fault someone for defending their kid, but Babs literally wrote a book about how crime is not the fault of the criminal, which her son clearly internalized and landed him in this pickle!"^[8]

Fong and SBF's last conversation was in July 2023, shortly before he was given a gag order that prohibited him from talking about his case with the press. In September 2023, Fong sent a letter to SBF's Metropolitan Detention Center jail cell, expressing empathy for his situation and expressing a desire to talk again someday. However, as of now, SBF has not responded to the letter. ^[3][5]

Tiffany Fong occasionally posts updates on happenings in the crypto space on her YouTube channel. On February 20, 2024, Fong posted photos of SBF in jail at MDC Brooklyn which she got via her friend.

"I got my hands on the first photo of Sam Bankman-Fried from jail at MDC Brooklyn thanks to my new friend, former inmate & ex blood gang member, G Lock!" - she posted on Linkedin^[9]