30-year-old billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried hosted an exclusive crypto conference in the Bahamas.Insider reporters spent the entire week in attendance at the hotel, panels, and meetings.Look behind the scenes at the conference, where rooms cost $614 a night and passes start at $3,000.The Crypto Bahamas conference lasted from April 26 through April 29.
It was hosted by 30-year-old crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried and SkyBridge founder Anthony Scaramucci.Crypto Bahamas sign at Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Kari McMahon/Insider The Crypto Bahamas conference is hosted by global thought leadership forum SALT and cofounded by alternative investments firm SkyBridge and the crypto exchange FTX , which was founded by 30-year-old crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried .
SALT has typically focused on creating events for the hedge fund and alternative assets space.
In 2021, FTX was a major sponsor at SALT’s New York event , which created a great opportunity for the crypto exchange to introduce themselves to the world of traditional finance, said John Darsie, managing director at SALT, at a press briefing during the conference.
“In our debrief with our sponsors, the FTX guys wanted us to consider them getting a little bit deeper into the conference business with us,” said Anthony Scaramucci, founder and managing partner of SkyBridge , in an interview with Insider.
SALT agreed on a relationship where FTX will be the lead sponsor for SALT events as well as SALT creating a crypto specific event for FTX in the Bahamas where the company’s headquarters is located, he added.
Insider reporters Vicky Huang and Kari McMahon traveled a combined 27 hours to reach the conference in the Bahamas.
Insider reporters Vicky Huang on the left and Kari McMahon on the right Vicky Huang/Insider Huang started her journey from New York at 6:00 a.m.on April 26 and reached the Bahamas six hours later.
Whereas McMahon’s journey started from the UK at 8 a.m.on April 25 and ended in the Bahamas 21 hours later.
Flights for the trip from the UK cost £944 ($1,181), while a direct flight from New York to the Bahamas cost $650.
The exclusive conference took place in the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar, bringing together over 2,000 attendees.Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Kari McMahon/Insider The Grand Hyatt Baha Mar, the venue for the conference, is around 15 minutes by taxi from the airport.
FTX reserved a batch of rooms at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar, which completely sold out.Additional rooms were then made available at another resort called Atlantis with shuttles going between the two venues.
“We originally set out to have a 1,000-person conference, this looks like it’s going to be a little bit over 2,000 people,” said Scaramucci.”And frankly, we had to start turning people away.It’s an island.So we had a certain amount of food that we ordered, we ordered a certain amount of refreshments and things like that.”
“So we just said, ‘Look, I’m sorry, you can’t come,'” Scaramucci added.
For the over 2,000 attendees, the event passes cost between $3,000 to $5,000.
A room with two queen beds and an ocean view at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar started at $614.The view from the room’s balcony; perfect for crypto “gm” pictures.
Kari McMahon/Insider We stayed at the conference venue in a room with two queen beds and a view that looks out onto the ocean.The average cost for this room per night was $614.
A room with one king bed was the cheapest in the hotel coming in at an average cost per night of $439.
Since we attended as part of the conference we were able to get a discounted rate.
The total cost for five nights came to $1,345 before additional taxes and service charges.
The rooms were spacious, providing free toiletries, bottled water, and a coffee machine.The balcony was by far the best part, creating the perfect backdrop for the essential crypto “gm” picture.
It was a work-hard, play-hard environment with a jam-packed agenda during the day and exclusive parties at night.Andrew Yang speaks with Kristin Smith at Crypto Bahamas.
Vicky Ge Huang/Insider The schedule for the conference was jam-packed with panels running each day from 9 a.m.to 5 p.m.featuring topics such as the future of Web3, crypto in sports, and finding alpha in the crypto markets.
Evening events were hosted on the Jasmine Lawn, the outside event space for the conference.
Exclusive parties also took place across the Bahamas.The luxury gated resort Albany created by Tavistock Group, Tiger Woods, and Ernie Els played host to a number of exclusive parties.
Property prices in Albany start at $5 million .
Bitcoin barely featured in many of the events and press interviews.Inside the Solana hacker house Kari McMahon/Insider What was interesting was that bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, barely featured in most panels.
Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency that is seen as a hedge against the financial system, essentially gave birth to the entire crypto ecosystem.Yet at this conference it felt like bitcoin was now being sidelined for discussions that focused instead on other layer ones such as solana and ethereum, as well as on layer-two scaling solutions.Only one panel was specifically dedicated to the “future of bitcoin” with a focus on its role in the lightning network.
Whether this is a sign of bitcoin’s stability in the crypto ecosystem or its waning dominance is yet to be determined.
The bigger topic of the conference was the focus on crypto regulation and legislation.Panels explored how countries like the Bahamas were rolling out clearer regulatory frameworks for crypto firms compared to other locations, such as the US, and what that means for the future of crypto.
The conference made an unusual call to make some of the keynote panels off-the-record.
Vicky Ge Huang/Insider Both of the keynote panels were off the record, meaning their contents could not be shared on social media or written about by the press.
However, that didn’t stop many of the participants from recording and sharing information from each of the panels.
The first keynote was an interview with legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady on the topic of winning.
The second keynote was an interview with President Bill Clinton and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair covering topics about the world today.
FTX put out all the stops in marketing and branding for the event.FTX NFT mints Kari McMahon/Insider Crypto exchange FTX nailed it on marketing and branding from displaying FTX branded “NFT mints” to offering their own range of beers and seltzers at evening events.
In a recent interview with Inside r, FTX’s chief marketing officer Nathaniel Whittemore explained that FTX is on a mission to supercharge its brand awareness as a way to reach more retail investors.
—FTX (@FTX_Official) April 21, 2022
The views were amazing.Sunset at Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Kari McMahon/Insider With temperatures topping 82 degrees Fahrenheit each day, conference attendees who were up early in the morning or partying late at night could get a glimpse of some killer sunsets.
Free food and drink were provided throughout the day.Eating in the hotel came at a price.Pepperoni pizza at the Pizza Lab at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Kari McMahon/Insider The conference offered a limited free breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffet outside on the Jasmine Lawn where various crypto companies had cabanas located.
In addition to the free food, the Baha Mar also has over 45 dining options to choose from, whether it was quick dining like Starbucks or luxurious fine dining like Fi’lia, which had a long line of individuals waiting for a table each night.
With a captive audience in the resort, even casual dining options were pricey.
A 12-inch pepperoni pizza and a small beer at the Pizza Lab restaurant costs $34.
The dress code was casual with FTX telling us to ditch the suit! Sam Bankman-Fried interviews Bill Clinton and Tony Blair in shorts and a t-shirt Vicky Huang/Insider The conference took a laid-back approach to the dress code, asking attendees to ditch the suit and go casual (or at least business casual).
The variety of outfit choices became a running joke throughout the conference.
“I mean, these people are unbelievable, the way they dress, right?” said Scaramucci in a press briefing.”I’m standing here in Brioni.These guys are in like Lululemon pants, white socks.So you know, we’re in a new world, okay? I’m bringing that up because the world is transforming before our eyes, the technology that’s happening is going to be life-changing for so many people.”
—Anthony Scaramucci (@Scaramucci) April 29, 2022
Pop culture and crypto celebrities collided at the conference Liam Payne performing at an exclusive party Kari McMahon/Insider The conference featured a star-studded guest list including Liam Payne, Katy Perry, and Steve Aoki, who performed at exclusive parties.Some of the biggest names in the financial services industry , like Cathie Wood and Michael Lewis, equally drew crowds of admiring fans when moving around the conference venue or at parties.
—Amy Wu (@amytongwu) April 27, 2022
If you got bored of the conference, you could visit the flamingos Grand Hyatt Baha Mar flamingos Kari McMahon/Insider FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried kicked off the conference by encouraging attendees to “make what you want out of the conference.”
“Don’t feel like you have to go to a particular panel for somebody you’re [not] excited about,” said Bankman-Fried.
“Don’t feel like you know that there’s a particular path.Do what’s going to be useful and interesting, exciting and new for you.
And hopefully, you’ll come away with a little bit more direction about what you want to be doing with your life.”
Attendees could fill their downtime by visiting the Baha Mar flamingos, which do daily parades on site.
Or the casino Casino at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Kari McMahon/Insider The Baha Mar also boasts the largest casino in the Caribbean open 24 hours a day.Guests and visitors can play at 18 different types of table games and over 1,000 different slot machines.
Or the pool A pool at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Kari McMahon/Insider Conference attendees could also relax by one of the seven pools as well as the onsite beach.
Or the many bars and restaurants An old fashioned cocktail at T2 Cigar Bar at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Kari McMahon/Insider The hotel also contains 16 bars and 26 restaurants from places to sit by the pool to well-known names like Umami Burger and fine-dining options.
The conference also hosted a Solana hacker house.A 14-year-old solana intern became a celebrity at the hacker house.Inside Solana hacker house at Crypto Bahamas Kari McMahon/Insider Running alongside the conference was a Solana Hacker House , which brings together Solana developers offering a space to collaborate and learn from leaders in the ecosystem.
Gajesh Naik, a software developer, became a celebrity at the conference for having joined Solana Labs as an intern at the age of 14.
—J◎e McCann (@joemccann) April 30, 2022
After all that activity, attendees could unwind with chair massages Chair massages at Crypto Bahamas Kari McMahon/Insider.