At least MacAskill and Beckstead need to resign from the EVF board, take a leave of absence, publicly recuse from responding to the FTX situation, or submit a detailed explanation of the facts and circumstances that render none of these actions appropriate. They are just too intertwined in the events that happened to be able to manage the conflict of interest and risks to impartiality (or at least the appearance of the same).
That’s not me saying that I think they committed misconduct, but I think the circumstances would easily “cause a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts to question [their] impartiality in the matter,” and that’s enough. Cf.5 CFR § 2635.502(a) (Standards of Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch [of the U.S. Government]). Although I’m not going to submit that EA officials should always follow government ethics rules, this is a really clear-cut case.
Hopefully they have recused and this just isn’t being stated due to PR concerns (because some people might misinterpret recusal as an admission of wrongdoing rather than as respect for a basic principle of good governance).
Yes — since the first week of the crisis, Nick and Will have been recused from the relevant discussions / decisions on the boards of both EV entities to avoid any potential conflict of interest. Staff in both EV entities were informed about that decision in mid-November.
My suspicion is that FTX fallout may be the defining issue of EVF’s corporate governance for the next few years, so having nearly half the board recused ain’t ideal but is certain better than non-recusal.
At least MacAskill and Beckstead need to resign from the EVF board, take a leave of absence, publicly recuse from responding to the FTX situation, or submit a detailed explanation of the facts and circumstances that render none of these actions appropriate. They are just too intertwined in the events that happened to be able to manage the conflict of interest and risks to impartiality (or at least the appearance of the same).
That’s not me saying that I think they committed misconduct, but I think the circumstances would easily “cause a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts to question [their] impartiality in the matter,” and that’s enough. Cf. 5 CFR § 2635.502(a) (Standards of Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch [of the U.S. Government]). Although I’m not going to submit that EA officials should always follow government ethics rules, this is a really clear-cut case.
Hopefully they have recused and this just isn’t being stated due to PR concerns (because some people might misinterpret recusal as an admission of wrongdoing rather than as respect for a basic principle of good governance).
Yes — since the first week of the crisis, Nick and Will have been recused from the relevant discussions / decisions on the boards of both EV entities to avoid any potential conflict of interest. Staff in both EV entities were informed about that decision in mid-November.
Thanks, Howie. That is reassuring.
My suspicion is that FTX fallout may be the defining issue of EVF’s corporate governance for the next few years, so having nearly half the board recused ain’t ideal but is certain better than non-recusal.