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☆ FTX customers are getting a rare good deal. Here’s why some are still angry
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

And yet, for FTX customers, there’s an unavoidable twinge of resentment over what could have been. See here: If you had one bitcoin in an FTX account in mid-November of 2022, it was worth about $17,500. The bankruptcy managers tracked down all of FTX’s crypto and other holdings and hired an investment manager to sell them. The bull run inflated the value of FTX’s significant crypto holdings, leaving the estate with more than enough to pay back customers. Although FTX said it would have as much as $16 billion to disburse, customers and Uncle Sam get paid out first.

Persons: CNN Business ’, bitcoin, it’d, you’d, Tom Brady, John Ray III, Ray, they’ll, FTX, Uncle Sam, Sam Bankman, SBF, he’d, SBF’s, who’s, Fried Organizations: CNN Business, New York CNN —, Sequoia, Prosecutors Locations: New York, FTX, bitcoin, Bankman

☆ FTX Customers Poised to Recover All Funds Lost in Collapse
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Customers of the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX are poised to recover all of the money they lost when the firm collapsed in 2022 and receive interest on top of it, the company’s bankruptcy lawyers said on Tuesday. The announcement was a landmark in the attempt to recover the $8 billion in customer assets that disappeared when FTX imploded virtually overnight, setting off a crisis in the crypto industry. Those payments would flow from a pool of assets that FTX’s lawyers have pulled together in the 17 months since the exchange collapsed, the lawyers said. The amount owed to customers was calculated based on the value of their holdings at the time of FTX’s bankruptcy in November 2022. A customer who lost one Bitcoin when FTX imploded, for example, would be entitled to less than $20,000, even though a Bitcoin is now worth more than $60,000.

Persons: FTX Locations: Delaware

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried has to repay $11 billion. How can he possibly do that?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Eva Rothenberg | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —A federal judge on Thursday ordered Sam Bankman-Fried to repay more than $11 billion as part of his sentence for defrauding customers and investors in his failed crypto exchange FTX. In their sentencing memorandum earlier this month, federal prosecutors laid out their reasoning for seeking $11 billion in forfeiture. Unlike restitution, where the money from seized assets goes directly to victims, the money from forfeiture is taken by the government and absorbed into the US Treasury. It is unclear how much Bankman-Fried is currently worth, but it’s likely not anywhere near $11 billion. So far, the Department of Justice has redistributed about $4 billion to Madoff’s victims.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, SBF, ” Mitchell Epner, “, ”, District Judge Lewis Kaplan, Anthony Capozzolo, Elizabeth Holmes, Holmes, Ramesh “ Sunny ” Balwani, Bernard Madoff, Peter Katz, Katz, they’ll, ” Katz Organizations: New, New York CNN, CNN, Treasury, District, “, of, Department of Justice’s, Department of Justice, Department Locations: New York, Eastern, of New York

NEW YORK (AP) — Sam Bankman-Fried co-founded the FTX crypto exchange in 2019 and quickly built it into the world's second most popular place to trade digital currency. Prosecutors soon charged Bankman-Fried with misappropriating billions of dollars in FTX customer deposits. As Alameda piled up losses during a cryptocurrency market decline, prosecutors said Bankman-Fried directed funds to be moved from FTX’s customer accounts to Alameda to plug holes in the hedge fund’s balance sheet. Photos You Should See View All 60 ImagesWHAT DOES BANKMAN-FRIED SAY? THE VERDICTBankman-Fried was convicted in November 2023 of two counts of wire fraud conspiracy, two counts of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit commodities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud.

Persons: Sam Bankman, FTX, Fried Organizations: Prosecutors, Alameda Research, Alameda Locations: Alameda

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | J. Edward Moreno | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange who was convicted of stealing billions of dollars from customers, was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Thursday, capping an extraordinary saga that upended the crypto industry and became a cautionary tale of greed and hubris. Mr. Bankman-Fried, 32, did not visibly react as Judge Lewis A. Kaplan handed down the sentence in Federal District Court in Manhattan. His parents, the law professors Joe Bankman and Barbara Fried, sat two rows from the front, staring at the floor. He knew it was criminal,” Judge Kaplan said of Mr. Bankman-Fried’s actions. Before the sentence was delivered, Mr. Bankman-Fried, cleanshaven and wearing a loosefitting brown jail uniform, apologized to FTX’s customers, investors and employees.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Bankman, Lewis A, Kaplan, Joe Bankman, Barbara Fried, ” Judge Kaplan Organizations: Court Locations: Manhattan

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried faces sentencing this week. Here’s what to expect
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Sentencing is a much more fluid process, with both sides allowed to make sweeping arguments to try to make their case to the judge. But instead, his life in recent years has been one of unmatched greed and hubris; of ambition and rationalization; and courting risk and gambling repeatedly with other people’s money,” prosecutors wrote in a memo. In a letter to the court, Marc Mukasey, the lawyer Bankman-Fried retained for sentencing, called the government’s memo “disturbing” and accused the government of trying to “break” Bankman-Fried. His behavior may come back to haunt Bankman-Fried in sentencing, Fischer said. But legal experts say that even if 100% of FTX customers get their money back, it’s not necessarily going to sway the judge to go easy on Bankman-Fried.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Judge Lewis Kaplan, ”, Kaplan, Howard Fischer, Moses Singer, Prosecutors, Fried, Marc Mukasey, Bankman, ” Mukasey, “, Sam, ’, Caroline Ellison, Fischer, ” Ellison, Bernie Madoff, it’s, ’ ”, John Ray, ” Ray Organizations: New, New York CNN, Southern, of, Prosecutors, Bankman, MIT, Detention, ” Prosecutors, Alameda Research Locations: New York, Manhattan, of New York, Palo Alto , California, Brooklyn, Bankman, FTX, Alameda

NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried's orchestration of one of history's largest financial frauds in his quest to dominate the cryptocurrency world deserves a prison sentence of 40 to 50 years, federal prosecutors on Friday told a federal judge. “His life in recent years has been one of unmatched greed and hubris; of ambition and rationalization; and courting risk and gambling repeatedly with other people’s money. And even now Bankman-Fried refuses to admit what he did was wrong,” prosecutors wrote. Bankman-Fried was extradited to the United States in December 2022 from the Bahamas after his companies collapsed a month earlier. “Even following FTX’s bankruptcy and his subsequent arrest, Bankman-Fried shirked responsibility, deflected blame to market events and other individuals, attempted to tamper with witnesses, and lied repeatedly under oath,” prosecutors said, citing his trial testimony.

Persons: — FTX, Sam Bankman, Prosecutors, Tom Brady, Larry David, “, Fried, ”, ” “, Judge Lewis A, Kaplan, Marc Mukasey, “ Sam, ” Mukasey, — Locations: Manhattan, ”, United States, Bahamas, Palo Alto , California

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers push for 6-year sentence in multibillion-dollar FTX fraud
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Under federal sentencing guidelines, he could face a maximum of 110 years. In the memo, Bankman-Fried’s lawyer, Marc Mukasey, asks the judge overseeing the case to reject the pre-sentencing report prepared by the Probation Department, which recommends a 100-year sentence. Considering Bankman-Fried’s “charitable works and demonstrated commitment to others” Mukasey recommends a prison sentence between five and six-and-a-half years. The judge overseeing the case, Lewis Kaplan of the Southern District of New York, will weigh several factors in deciding Bankman-Fried’s sentence, including arguments from prosecutors, defense counsel and the recommendations from the Probation Department. Typically, in white-collar crimes, the bigger the financial loss, the longer the sentence.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, Marc Mukasey, ”, “, ” Mukasey, —, Mukasey, FTX, Lewis Kaplan, Jordan Estes, Kramer Levin, Estes Organizations: New, New York CNN, Probation Department, Southern, of, Department, ”, US Attorney’s, Southern District Locations: New York, Manhattan, FTX, Brooklyn, of New York

(AP) — A federal appeals court has ordered the appointment of an independent examiner in the bankruptcy case of FTX amid concerns about widespread fraud preceding the collapse of the multibillion-dollar cryptocurrency exchange. A three-judge panel in Philadelphia issued the ruling Friday in an appeal filed by the U.S. bankruptcy trustee, who serves as a government watchdog in Chapter 11 reorganizations. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge John Dorsey denied the trustee’s request last February. The appeals court reversed Dorsey’s ruling, agreeing with the trustee that the bankruptcy code mandates the appointment of an examiner. “Such is the case here.”Restrepo also noted that an examiner is required to make his or her findings public, whereas a debtor or creditors committee conducting an internal investigation has no such obligation.

Persons: John Dorsey, Dorsey, John Ray III, FTX, Sam Bankman, Fried, Prosecutors, ”, Luis Felipe Restrepo, ” Restrepo Organizations: —, U.S, FTX, Alameda Research Locations: Del, Philadelphia, FTX

NEW YORK (AP) — Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo has been hit with class-action lawsuit seeking at least $1 billion in damages for his role in promoting cryptocurrency-related “non-fungible tokens,” or NFTs, issued by the beleaguered cryptocurrency exchange Binance. Representatives for Ronaldo and Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, did not immediately return The Associated Press' requests for comment. Ronaldo launched his inaugural NFT “CR7” collection with Binance back in November of last year, ahead of the 2022 World Cup. Most recently, on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) Ronaldo reposted a Binance video and wrote that he was “Cooking something up" with the crypto exchange on Tuesday. Over the summer, Binance was accused of operating as an unregistered securities exchange and violating a slew of U.S. securities laws in a lawsuit from regulators.

Persons: Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldo, ”, Binance, “, Ronaldo's, NFTs, Changpeng Zhao, Larry David, Tom Brady —, FTX’s, Al Nassr Organizations: Southern District of, Associated Press, Twitter, FTX, Spanish, Real Madrid, Juventus, Manchester United, Saudi Arabian Locations: Portuguese, cryptocurrency, Southern District, Southern District of Florida, Portugal, Hollywood, England

☆ FTX Sues Crypto Exchange Bybit to Recover $953 Million in Cash and Assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Becky Yerak | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Bybit operates one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency trading exchanges. Photo: karim sahib/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesBankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX has filed a lawsuit against Bybit Fintech and two affiliates to try to claw back assets valued at $953 million that were withdrawn shortly before FTX’s November 2022 collapse. The lawsuit, filed Friday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., alleges that Bybit’s investment arm, Mirana, “leveraged its VIP connections to pressure FTX group employees to fulfill its withdrawal requests as soon as assets became available.”

Persons: Bybit, karim sahib, FTX, Bybit Fintech Organizations: Agence France, Getty, Bankruptcy Locations: U.S, Wilmington, Del

☆ Sam Bankman Fried Exposed the Fragility of Crypto - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Molly White | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

In early 2019, FTX’s token, FTT, was conjured out of thin air as Mr. Bankman-Fried launched FTX from the same Hong Kong office where he ran Alameda Research. The FTT token initially sold to the public for around $1, but as cryptocurrency boomed into 2021, the token skyrocketed to $10, doubled again to $20 within a month of that and eventually peaked above $75. The bulk of them remained with FTX or Alameda Research. A trader might have reasonably agreed to buy a small amount of FTT tokens for the market price listed on an exchange. Other cryptocurrency firms that were overexposed to FTX or Alameda Research went bankrupt, in turn leaving their own customers and investors in the lurch.

Persons: Fried, FTX Organizations: Hong, Alameda Research, Alameda, Binance Locations: Hong Kong, Alameda, U.S, United States, FTX

☆ After a year in FTX’s shadow, the crypto industry is deligting in Bankman-Fried’s conviction
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-04 | by ( Manav Tanneeru | Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —It took just under a year for Sam Bankman-Fried to go from crypto wunderkind to convicted felon. When Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire collapsed last November, it sent the fledgling industry back years. For the crypto faithful who are still standing and striving, the trial couldn’t be over soon enough. “A lot of folks in the crypto industry are delighted,” said Yesha Yadav, a law professor and associate dean at Vanderbilt University. “There’s definitely an element of ‘ding-dong the witch is dead,’” said Eric Soufer, a political adviser to major crypto companies, referring to Bankman-Fried’s conviction.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, ”, Bobby Zagotta, “ SBF, Yesha Yadav, “, FTX, they’ll, Bernie Madoff, Elizabeth Holmes, Gary Gensler, “ There’s, ’ ”, Eric Soufer Organizations: New, New York CNN, Vanderbilt University, BlackRock, Fidelity, Justice Department, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC Locations: New York, European

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried Faces Lengthy Sentence—And Long Odds on Appeal
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Corinne Ramey | James Fanelli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, was convicted Thursday in a New York federal court of stealing billions of dollars from customers. Prosecutors have called it one of the biggest financial frauds in U.S. history. Photo: Amr Alfiky/ReutersDisgraced crypto star Sam Bankman-Fried is staring down a lengthy prison sentence after being convicted of fraud in the collapse of FTX, and he faces long odds of making any inroads on appeal. A federal jury in New York wasted little time Thursday in convicting the 31-year-old FTX founder of all seven counts he faced, a verdict issued just hours after deliberations began. Jurors agreed with prosecutors that theft and lies by Bankman-Fried fueled FTX’s demise.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Amr Alfiky, Fried Organizations: Prosecutors, Venture Locations: New York, convicting

☆ Breakingviews: SBF’s guilty verdict will help crypto break free
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Anita Ramaswamy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Jane Rosenberg Acquire Licensing RightsNEW YORK, Nov 2 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Just over a year ago, Sam Bankman-Fried might have been counting his large stash of virtual coins. A Manhattan jury on Thursday convicted the FTX founder of seven counts related to crimes he committed at the helm of the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange. With some $8 billion in customer funds stolen, his misdeeds will go down as one of the biggest financial frauds on record. To be sure, the speculative bubble in crypto would probably have deflated even without Bankman-Fried. The bankrupt exchange is also negotiating with three bidders to help it relaunch trading services, Bloomberg reported last month.

Persons: Lewis Kaplan, Sam Bankman, Fried, Jane Rosenberg, FTX, John J, Ray III, Nicolas Roos, Peter Thal Larsen, Thomas Shum Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Galaxy Digital, Three, BlackRock, Bloomberg, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Manhattan

☆ Who is former crypto king Sam Bankman-Fried?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Samantha Delouya | Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

New York (CNN) — Sam Bankman-Fried, once known as a cryptocurrency whiz kid, was found guilty on Thursday for his role in the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. His entrepreneurial drive didn’t stop there: In 2019, Bankman-Fried co-founded cryptocurrency exchange FTX and became its CEO. In December 2022, Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas after US prosecutors filed criminal charges against him. Jane Rosenberg/ReutersBankman-Fried was found guilty of stealing billions of dollars from accounts belonging to customers of his once-high-flying crypto exchange FTX. Immediately following FTX’s crash, crypto exchange Gemini, which was founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, froze customer redemptions in its lending unit, citing market turmoil.

Persons: — Sam Bankman, FTX, Jane Street, ”, Fried, “, …, ” Sam Bankman, Erika P, Rodriguez, Jane, Caroline Ellison, Binance, Sam Bankman, Danielle Sassoon, District Judge Lewis Kaplan, Jane Rosenberg, Joe Bankman, Barbara Fried, Bankman, Allan Joseph Bankman, Yuki Iwamura, Samuel Bankman, Saul Loeb, ingratiated, Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, Naomi Osaka, Larry David, Cameron, Tyler Winklevoss Organizations: CNN, Jane, Capital, MIT, Alameda Research, Chicago Tribune, Tribune, Service, SoftBank, U.S, District, Reuters, Bloomberg, Royal Bahamas Police Force, Billionaire, Stanford, FTX, Getty, Democratic Party, Federal, Commission, Republican, Agriculture, Nutrition, Forestry, Miami Heat, ”, New Locations: York, Alameda, North Berkeley , California, Nassau, Bahamas, BlackRock, Bankman, Hong Kong, United States, FTT, New York City, U.S, FTX, New York, Washington ,

☆ The 5 most memorable moments from the Sam Bankman-Fried trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty Thursday following a monthlong trial that was almost as wild as the rapid rise and fall of cryptocurrency exchange FTX itself. He was found guilty of stealing billions of dollars from accounts belonging to customers of FTX. During the trial, Bankman-Fried took the unusual – and risky – decision to testify in his own defense. “I was kind of busy and lazy and didn’t bother getting a haircut for long periods of time,” Bankman-Fried said. “No offense to the Kansas City Royals, but we didn’t want to be known as the Kansas City Royals of crypto exchanges,” SBF testified.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, Bernie Madoff’s, Caroline Ellison, SBF’s, Mark Cohen, ” Cohen, “, ”, Cohen, SBF, Ellison, ” SBF, Lewis Kaplan, Kaplan interjected, Bankman, Danielle Sassoon, …, Sassoon, ’ Organizations: New, New York CNN, Alameda Research, Miami Heat, American Airlines, FTX, New Orleans Saints, Kansas City Chiefs, Kansas City Royals, Kaseya, PR, Alameda Locations: New York, FTX, Bahamas, United States, Kansas City, Bankman, China, Alameda

☆ Verdict reached in Sam Bankman-Fried fraud trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty on Thursday for his role in the collapse of crypto exchange FTX. Bankman-Fried looked sunken as the verdict was read out. Bankman-Fried was found guilty of stealing billions of dollars from accounts belonging to customers of his once-high-flying crypto exchange FTX. During his trial, Bankman-Fried said he learned in 2020 that FTX customer funds were held by Alameda but he did not take action to safeguard them. But, unlike bank customers, FTX depositors had no federal insurance fund to compensate them when the cash dried up.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, Joe Bankman, Barbara Fried, Bernie Madoff’s, FTX, Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Gary Wang, Nishad Singh, Wang, Singh Organizations: New, New York CNN, Alameda Research, Bankman, Miami, Chief Locations: New York, Alameda, FTX, Bahamas

☆ Silicon Valley Shrugs Off Sam Bankman-Fried’s Trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Erin Griffith | More About Erin Griffith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the four weeks that Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, was on trial on fraud charges, the tech industry:Reacted to the war in Israel and Gaza, including protesting a tech conference organizer’s social media posts about the conflict. Buzzed over a manifesto from a top venture capitalist outlining a list of enemies to technological progress. Scrambled to invest money in the hottest artificial intelligence company, OpenAI, at triple its valuation earlier this year. Hotly debated the new features on Threads, a social media site owned by Meta. But a simpler answer could be that the tech industry has again done what it does best: move on to the next thing.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Bankman Organizations: Meta Locations: Israel, Gaza, FTX

The witnesses painted a portrait of Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, as a controlling boss who directed them to commit fraud. She was apprehensive about the move, she said, because she knew that would mean borrowing $1 billion in FTX customer funds for the transaction. “That’s OK, I think this is really important, we have to get it done,” Mr. Bankman-Fried told Ms. Ellison, according to her testimony. At Mr. Bankman-Fried’s urging, Mr. Sun said, he ran through a few theoretical options to justify the borrowing and spending of FTX customer money. But Mr. Sun, who testified after securing an agreement that prosecutors would not pursue charges against him, said he had once again told Mr. Bankman-Fried that none of those options were supported “by the facts.” Mr. Bankman-Fried responded by saying “something like, ‘Got it,’” Mr. Sun testified.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, Bankman, Caroline Ellison —, Adam Yedidia, Mr, Yedidia, FTX, ” Caroline Ellison Ms, Ellison, Ms, Gary Wang Mr, Wang, ”, coder, Nishad Singh Mr, Singh, Gabe, Gabe Bankman, ” Mr, Prosecutors, Barbara Fried, Nishad Singh, Sun, ’ Organizations: Alameda Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford, Mr, Prosecutors, America Locations: Bahamas, Alameda, Binance, Pandemics

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried’s fourth day on the stand is not going well
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Sam Bankman-Fried is back in court Tuesday for a fourth day of testimony as his federal fraud trial continues. Bankman-Fried testified that he attended a dinner with the island nation’s prime minister, alongside former US president Bill Clinton and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. In November last year, after FTX had frozen customer withdrawals amid a liquidity crunch, Bankman-Fried offered to open up withdrawals for all Bahamian customers. Bankman-Fried testified he did open those withdrawals “for a short period.”Bankman-Fried also testified that he doesn’t recall ever directing Alameda employees not to spend the FTX customer deposits. ‘Uninvolved’ in AlamedaMark Cohen, Bankman-Fried’s lead attorney, gave him a chance Tuesday morning to clarify some of his testimony regarding the relationship between FTX and Alameda.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Bankman, Fried, Danielle Sassoon, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, FTX, ”, Alameda Mark Cohen, SBF, “ Organizations: New, New York CNN, Prosecutors, Alameda Research, Bankman, Bahamian, Alameda Locations: New York, Bahamas, Alameda, FTX

The 31-year-old onetime crypto mogul fumbled for an answer when the prosecutor, Danielle Sassoon, repeatedly asked whether he had told his employees not to spend FTX customer money on investments, pricey real estate and other expenditures. Mr. Bankman-Fried also couldn’t name any employees who might have authorized the use of FTX customer money for that spending. “I don’t recall giving any direction,” Mr. Bankman-Fried said three times about the spending of FTX customer money before he concluded his testimony. Both sides rested their case before lunchtime on Tuesday, with closing statements set to unfold on Wednesday. Mr. Bankman-Fried was on the stand for a third day testifying before a jury in his own defense for a trial that has come to symbolize the highs and lows of the volatile crypto industry.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Danielle Sassoon, Fried, ” Mr Organizations: Alameda Research Locations: Alameda

The witnesses have painted a portrait of Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, as a controlling boss who directed them to commit fraud. “That’s OK, I think this is really important, we have to get it done,” Mr. Bankman-Fried told Ms. Ellison, according to her testimony. At Mr. Bankman-Fried’s urging, Mr. Sun said, he ran through a few theoretical options to justify the borrowing and spending of FTX customer money. But Mr. Sun, who testified after securing an agreement that prosecutors would not pursue charges against him, said he had once again told Mr. Bankman-Fried that none of those options were supported “by the facts.” Mr. Bankman-Fried responded by saying “something like, ‘Got it,’” Mr. Sun testified. Prosecutors then played a clip from an interview that Mr. Bankman-Fried gave ABC’s “Good Morning America” days before FTX filed for bankruptcy in November.

☆ Takeaways from Sam Bankman-Fried’s second day in front of a jury
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Lucy Bayly | Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Prosecutors grilled former crypto king Sam Bankman-Fried on Monday as his criminal fraud trial entered its third week. The pace of withdrawals then increased further, with about $4 billion in net withdrawals the following day, or 100 times more than a typical day. A market downturn meant that assets associated with FTX’s sister company, the hedge fund Alameda Research, “declined massively in value,” he said. Ellison agreed Alameda should have been hedgedBankman-Fried on Monday recalled a conversation he had with Caroline Ellison, his ex-girlfriend and then-CEO of Alameda Research. “Do you recall saying FTX and Alameda acted separately?” Sassoon asked.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Bernie Madoff, ”, Fried, Judge Lewis Kaplan, Bankman, FTX, “, SBF, Ellison, Caroline Ellison, Danielle Sassoon, ” Sassoon, “ I’m, Sassoon, ” SBF, What’s Organizations: New, New York CNN, Prosecutors, Alameda Research, “, PR Locations: New York, Alameda, Alameda . Alameda

“I’m not sure,” he responded over and over, as Ms. Sassoon asked about statements he had made when he was chief executive of FTX. Ms. Sassoon displayed statements that appeared to show Mr. Bankman-Fried saying one thing in public, then acting differently in private. Criminal defendants usually avoid testifying so that prosecutors don’t have a chance to question them. In December, federal prosecutors charged Mr. Bankman-Fried with orchestrating a sweeping scheme to steal as much as $10 billion from FTX’s customers. Mr. Bankman-Fried was also accused of creating a secret backdoor in FTX’s code that allowed Alameda to seize billions of dollars in customer funds.

Persons: “ I’m, ”, Sassoon, Bankman, Elizabeth Holmes, don’t, FTX, Fried Locations: Washington, Bahamas, Alameda

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