system
A chat on subreddit /r/wallstreetbets
human
&gt;How did SBF not realize. Dude is dense as lead.

Honest speculation from my side: If you're sufficiently rich the gray areas of the law are a lot wider than for the rest of us. It's ENTIRELY possible he really thought he was enough inside the gray area to not be in danger of being prosecuted for any wrongdoings.  

Having a lot of money opens up a whole wide area of possibilities of being a "smart business man" beyond the "everything past this legal limit is illegal" line that is the reality for the rest of us.
gpt
When you’re 25, an MIT grad and start a quant trading firm in 2017, you probably think you’re some kind of fucking genius cuz your plays are always in the black. Being that age with that kind of hubris, unlimited funds and next to zero adults in the room, it seems inevitable that this would happen.