First ... I know I screwed up BIG TIME, so on one hand I kinda feel like I got what I deserved, but on the other hand I think there's a path where I can make things WORSE and probably a very thin narrow path that with some skill I might be able to salvage something.
A) Friend got involved with Bitcoin arbitrage ... takes cash, buys Bitcoin ... then sells it on international market to buyers for more than what he paid .... He was investing a lot of money for his Mom and Dad, so when I ran into a financial crunch, he offered to help. I wired $25,000 from a business account, expecting to return it with interest a few weeks later. Since then (June 5th) all I got was one "interest" payment of 6% (late) when the original deal was 2 payments per month. He said he'd return the money July 6th.
B) Meanwhile, same friend was going on a trip and asked me to manage an event to promote a new product on super short notice. We've worked together before and regularly talk about our respective businesses. Normally I'd hire or bring in my own team (and that was the original agreement), but in this case "things were moving fast" and he hired a bunch of randoms off UpWork and then handed everything over to me 18 days later. Said he trusted me 100% and paid me up front. He also said he didn't want to be involved -- "just run it". A lot was completely screwed up. Of course it was a complete mess, and to make matters worse, one of the key players was 38 weeks pregnant and she went into labor right when a bunch of stuff was supposed to happen with sponsorships and promotional outreach. So people didn't have what they needed, several had never done email marketing or social media before, and there were a lot of obstacles with people not being able to login to the tools they needed, etc. My friend was completely off the grid ... working on 2 or 3 other businesses, not available for meetings or anything. Then 4th of July holiday came around. So by July 11th things were not where they needed to be and my friend was pretty pissed off and blamed me for everything. By July 16th he fired me for gross negligence, saying I completely betrayed his trust.
I realize "facts" don't matter when someone is angry, and in the last call he was talking like a complete crazy person. We've been really close friends for over 5 years ... gone through MANY rough times together. When I heard him talk this way I was thinking, "He's just upset & looking for someone to blame ... he feels backed into a corner .... I'm the only one he can lash out at like this .... he'll realize this doesn't make sense when he looks thru Basecamp & Telegram .... he's a reasonable and logical guy .... he's going on lack of sleep" So I didn't react, just tried to stay calm. But now it's 3 weeks later and his last message to me was "I thought we were gonna build something; turns out something was being built but I wasn’t involved or invited, just footed the bill." I told him if he didn't feel like he got the value he expected, I didn't want his money. I haven't said ANYTHING about the $25,000 but I'm sort of getting the feeling like he's going to keep it as payback (or punishment) for all the money he lost, despite the fact my role was a small part of that.
Suing him is not really an option since he technically doesn't own anything and all his assets are wrapped into layers and layers of corporate shell entities that can't be tied back to him. Everything he does is encrypted end to end and he's completely anonymous -- no permanent address, moves from city to city, etc. Even if I did win a judgement, I'd never be able to collect, and I feel my best scenario is trying to restore the friendship. But the way he's talking I think he's already made up his mind. I've been biting my tongue and keeping quiet. Is that a mistake? Would it be better if I laid out my defense? I just think messaging over Telegram is not the best way to handle this ... am I wrong about that? Most of our relationship has been over Telegram ....
So which of the following options is my best bet?
A) WAIT and HOLD. Let things die down ... let time pass ... wait a few months (?) and then see if he's had a chance to look thru the project notes, maybe realize I actually did a lot of good work, or at least wake up from whatever bizarre trance he's in and realize I'm not the villain he's making me out to be? I'm also thinking if I wait he might make a lot more money on Bitcoin trading, and the sting of this venture might not be as bad. Or does waiting just make things worse and LESS likely we'll be able to discuss this like rational adults?
B) Read the writing on the wall, accept facts and come to grips that both the friendship and my $25K are gone forever.
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