[Snowman]

Originally Posted by packs

As someone who is authorized to make wire transfers and does so professionally, I do not believe this version of the story either.

For example, I have to submit my requests to an e-mail address. The request must come from my account and the bank will only call me on my approved phone number to confirm the wire request. The entire confirmation and phone call occurs on a recorded line. I then receive a receipt for the request via e-mail.

So, the only way for that version of the story to be true, is for the interpreter to be in sole possession of Ohtani's personal devices or for he himself to be authorized to draw on the account. We know that isn't the case because if it were, he wouldn't say he was impersonating anyone.

At some point I expect Ohtani's bank to chime in. I highly doubt they want other clients to think their funds are equally as vulnerable to seemingly lax security measures.

There are different rules for different people though. Your experience sending wire transfers almost certainly differs from that of someone like Ohtani.

Nate Silver, founder of fivethirtyeight.com and an avid high-stakes gambler, had this to say on the matter:

Originally Posted by Nate Silver

Look, people in the gambling part of my world routinely need to exchange large amounts of money, and wire transfers are a convenient method for accomplishing this. And contrary to what you might think, and what I’ve seen assumed elsewhere, they won’t necessarily trigger that much due diligence from your bank, particularly for domestic wires. (Foreign wires are a different story.) Especially if you have a track record of doing so, you can log onto your online banking portal and send a wire without ever getting a phone call or otherwise hearing from a human being. Different customers will have different limits, but a VIP like Ohtani is likely to have high limits. It’s not quite as easy as sending a payment by Zelle or something, but sending a wire isn’t that much harder, either.