Opinion: Ken Griffin of the Citadel just spent $43.2 million on schadenfreude — and he also received a copy of the US Constitution
In just a few days, a hastily but badly organized group of crypto enthusiasts managed to combine the stimulating forces of “stock meme” and crypto movements. crowdfunding over 40 million dollars and get a super rare copy of the US Constitution, using it as a symbol of how decentralized finance can empower the little guy against Wall Street billionaires.
On Thursday, the most hated of Wall Street billionaires outnumbered them, spending $43.2 million on a sale so steeped in irony that we’re not even sure we can. enjoy the weekend.
News that Citadel founder Ken Griffin has boosted the team behind ConstitutionDAO in a last-minute bidding war rattled by Sotheby’s on Friday afternoon, hurling another ton of outraged kerosene into the flames of hatred that have burned so brightly against the man that retail investors all over the world. social media derisively called “Kenny G.”.
When Retail Investors Post About GameStop Stock Squeeze
GME,
AMC Entertainment
AMC,
and other memes, it’s that Griffin is almost always seen as the embodiment of the person they hope will be debunked.
In fact, Apes of Reddit made Griffin their main villain, with daily barrages of memes using his face as a form of emotional targeting practice.
The most popular of these is a still photo from a video that gives billionaire hedge fund managers and market makers an atmosphere of confusion and emotionlessness that can be used as the backdrop for the text. versions such as “KenGriffinLied,” alluding to their belief that Griffin misled Congress in February when he announced that Citadel Securities had no role in Robinhood’s decision to restrict trading in the meme stock. on January 28.
The Citadel has consistently denied those allegations, even tweeting a statement from Griffin via tweet in late September – an almost unprecedented moment of virtual intimacy between Griffin and his haters – and , also on Thursday, a federal judge in Florida dismissed a highly publicized lawsuit accusing the two companies of collusion in January.
The tailless monkey also loves the meme that Griffin only eats mayonnaise.
Those assertions have not been commented on by Griffin or his team.
All that hate and trolling clearly got Griffin’s attention. The notoriously press-shy billionaire has been increasingly vocal about his displeasure with the Monkey turning him into the Darth Vader mayonnaise of modern finance.
Just last week, Griffin said in an interview at the DealBook Summit that “The whole GameStop plot… is like a half-joke. It’s like a sketch of Saturday Night Live all the time.”
But by winning Thursday’s bidding war, Griffin spent more than $43 million trolling his trolls at once, sending a message – on purpose or not – that he still has can beat the populist wave of modern investors using DeFi on its own power alone. will… and checkbook.
And the response to Griffin’s constitutional applause has been swift and brutal on social media.
“Ken Griffin defeated a community-sourced attempt to purchase an early copy of the constitution on behalf of the American people,” posted on the r/AMCStock subreddit. “If that’s not the most Ken Griffin-ish thing you’ve ever heard.”
“Clearly not caring what it stands for. It is an insult to law-abiding citizens,” reads on the response. “That should belong to the people of the United States.”
Other articles are less political science.
“KEN GRIFFIN LETS GIVE UP THE COMPETITION – WHAT IN REALITY!?!?” is the title of an example.
On Twitter, many reactions were hilarious when talking about the difficult future of community-sourced DeFi projects:
To create fun:
To the rage of populism:
To high art:
But the overwhelming tone has been bolstered with more energy to bring Griffin and Citadel down through meme vaults and many of the attacks similar to DAOs.
In fact, the most attention-grabbing tweet might come from the team that lost to Griffin in the auction:
But while Griffin could be sued for proving that billionaires always win, it would only be fair to mention that he would donate his copy of the Constitution to a museum.
“The Constitution of the United States is a sacred document that protects the rights of every American and all who aspire to be,” Griffin said in a statement. “That is why I intend to make sure that our copy of this Constitution will be available to all Americans and visitors to see and appreciate in our museums and other public spaces. I.”
That museum? Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., Founded by a Billionaire, Walmart
WMT,
heiress Alice Walton.
As we said, lots of levels for this one.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/citadels-ken-griffin-just-spent-43-2-million-on-schadenfreude-and-he-also-got-a-copy-of-the-u-s-constitution-11637361290?rss=1&siteid=rss Opinion: Ken Griffin of the Citadel just spent $43.2 million on schadenfreude — and he also received a copy of the US Constitution
