‘Money Failed!’: Bill Hwang Fights Jail After Losing $36 Billion (1)

It came to him in a dream. That’s what Bill Hwang told people.

In his vision, the blood of Christ washes over New York, cleansing the great metropolis of its sins. The mysterious trader — creator-destroyer of one of the world’s great fortunes — was so moved by the idea that, like a modern Medici, he commissioned a famous artist to bring his dream to life.

Today the striking artwork hangs in the Midtown offices of the Christian charity Hwang established while building Archegos, his family office, into a treacherous force that rattled markets. Thick rivulets of red paint, ...