Earlier quoted context omitted.
> secured only on his parents’ home in Palo Alto, This part is incorrect - his parents and 2 other individuals with ‘significant assets’ signed on his bond.
Normally when you post bail you have 2 options: 1. Pledge the full amount of the bail yourself. You get this back if the accused shows up in court, you lose it of they flee. 2. Pay some percentage (usually X%) to a bail bondsman. You never get that money back, and if the accused flees, the bail bondsman will try to get the money from whomever signed the bond (as the bail bondsman is on the hook). The bail bondsman ma…
My guess is he was not required to post full collateral, i.e. the only collateral here is the home, and then Sam, his parents, and two others posted essentially an unsecured guarantee for the full $250M, such that the government could recover up that amount from any assets held by any of those parties. While unsecured, note that the government probably has priority over any creditors and could and would seize any assets of those parties per the guarantee.