‘Very valuable’ hair
In her afternoon testimony on Wednesday, Ellison said Bankman-Fried’s disheveled appearance was a calculated PR strategy.

“He thought his hair had been very valuable,” she said, adding that Bankman-Fried believed he’d received higher bonuses, going back to his early career as a trader at Jane Street, “because of his hair.”

She thought he was trying to cultivate an image as an eccentric crypto pioneer.

Bankman-Fried often told journalists that he drove a Toyota Corolla, a detail that could suggest he’s a pragmatist who isn’t concerned with the trappings of being a billionaire. But Ellison said the Corolla was part of the media strategy, and that he started driving it only after turning in his more luxurious company-issued car.

FTX collapsed into bankruptcy in November of 2022 after a leaked balance sheet revealing Alameda’s unusually close financial ties to FTX prompted a panic among investors and customers.