Doing That Shuffle
A former JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs executive raised $4.3 million to start a blockchain gambling app. Then he allegedly blew his seed money in another online casino.
“Gambling: The sure way of getting nothing for something.” – Wilson Mizner
Richard Kim called his startup Zero Edge. He should have called it Zero Self-Control.
The 39-year-old tech entrepreneur founded his company in March 2024 touting big plans to leverage cryptocurrency technologies in a gaming app. We’re talking craps, roulette, baccarat and blackjack with digital funny money.
Leveraging his Wall Street connections, Kim raised $4.3 million from investors who probably should have known him better. Then he gambled it away in a slew of crypto wallets and at Shuffle.com, a “VIP Crypto Casino and Sportsbook.”
Prosecutors unsealed a fraud indictment against Kim on Wednesday. The Securities and Exchange Commission had already filed a civil complaint against him in May.
Kim, who faces up to 20 years in prison, has been unusually contrite for a white-collar defendant, coming clean with his investors and even the SEC.
Kim claims it’s all because of his gambling addiction. Here’s what he told , according to CoinDesk, which was first to break the story in July 2024.
“Part of my rationale in reaching out proactively to the SEC was to say, OK guys, I really f—d up. I lost this money. It was grossly negligent. But I didn't intend to go run away with this money.”
A gambling disorder is a real thing. It’s even classified by the American Psychiatric Association beside drug and alcohol addictions. But you can’t just stagger into a courtroom and tell the judge, “Sorry, I was drunk.”
If you know you have a drinking problem, you probably shouldn’t buy a liquor store. And if you know you have a gambling problem, you probably shouldn’t start a gaming app with other people’s money.
But Kim’s story get worse. This guy held key positions at the nation’s two largest investment banks JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs, where he helped manage billions and billions in bets.
Kim also boasted a law degree from Columbia Law School, and he helped JPMorgan Chase implement requirements under Dodd-Frank, or what’s officially known as the Wall Street And Consumer Protection Reform Act.
This massive piece of legislation, you’ll recall, was lawmakers’ response to the 2008 financial crisis, which was caused by, you know … WALL STREET’S ENDEMIC GAMBLING PROBLEM.
“The moment I received the proceeds, something snapped,” Kim told CoinDesk.
Something always snaps. It’s why Business Blunders never runs out of material.
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