Kenne Michael 
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is no longer active in cryptocurrency trading; instead, he has decided to trade fish while in jail, having been recently convicted.
Before his criminal trial last month, Bankman-Fried reportedly exchanged four packets of Mackerel, referred to as “macks” in prison, for a haircut, as the Wall Street Journal reported on Nov. 23.
Mackerel packets have become the most actively traded commodity in correctional facilities across the United States since the ban on tobacco products.
Postage stamps and soup packets – “soups” — rank second and third in the value hierarchy.
Meanwhile, packets of mackerel are available for $1.30 at the commissary of the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), where Bankman-Fried is confined.
The Journal was informed by sources with knowledge of the situation that Bankman-Fried shares a cell at the Brooklyn prison with former Honduran president Juan Hernández and a former senior Mexican police officer.
The legitimacy of the reports was called into question by social media analysts, and controversial tech figure Martin Shkreli, also referred to as “pharma bro” and having been convicted for over four years in federal prison, confirmed that macks were a common form of currency in U.S. jails.
Shkreli stated on X (formerly Twitter) on Nov. 24 that paying four macks for a haircut was a “rip off” but noted that it was still cheaper than purchasing a book of stamps.
Compared to a typical state federal prison, Shkreli explained in the MDC that the market for macks was larger than that of stamps.
However, he cautioned against carrying more than 500 mack packs, stating that doing so would raise suspicions.
🚨SBF UPDATE: Sam Bankman-Fried is in a unit with former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández and Genaro García Luna, Mexico’s former secretary of public security. Sam is known to be trading Mackerel, the fish, as prison currency, more commonly called "Pouches of Mack."…
— Autism Capital 🧩 (@AutismCapital) November 23, 2023
Since Bankman-Fried is a vegan, he wouldn’t consume mackerel, which made them easier for the newly convicted former billionaire to trade.
Bankman-Fried’s request for temporary release from prison pending his sentencing hearing on Mar. 28, next year, was denied by the court of appeals on Nov. 21.
On Nov. 2, Bankman-Fried was convicted of seven counts connected to money laundering and fraud.
