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Apple | Spotify | Amazon | YouTube Listen and follow ‘Hard Fork’OpenAI has released its plan to fight disinformation in elections in 2024, but will its policies be consequential compared to those of other generative A.I. Then, a watershed moment had crypto fans celebrating for the first time in maybe more than a year. And finally, what one writer’s attempt to sell a used mechanical pencil on TikTok says about how the platform is changing. Today’s guests:David Yaffe-Bellany covers the crypto industry for The New York TimesJohn Herrman covers technology for New York MagazineAdditional Reading:

Persons: OpenAI, David Yaffe, The New York Times John Herrman Organizations: Apple, Spotify, YouTube, The New York Times, New York

Apple | Spotify | Amazon | YouTube Listen and follow ‘Hard Fork’The drama at OpenAI is not over. Kevin and Casey take stock of new information they’ve gathered since last week, and look at how other artificial intelligence companies are trying to capitalize on the debacle. Then, why people are still buying cryptocurrency even after Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, and its founder pleaded guilty to money laundering violations. And finally, three ways A.I. Today’s guest: David Yaffe-Bellany covers crypto for The New York Times.

Persons: Casey, David Yaffe Organizations: Apple, Spotify, YouTube, The New York Times

Customers from Iran, Cuba and Syria — all of which face sanctions — were able to access the Binance platform. In addition to the outlawed foreign transactions, Binance did business with firms based in the United States even though it was not supposed to have any U.S. customers on its Binance.com platform. Instead, a different platform, Binance.US, which Mr. Zhao also owned, was required to handle the business and abide by U.S. anti-money laundering laws. But Mr. Zhao and other Binance employees believed it would be better for the main cryptocurrency exchange to handle big U.S. customers, the court filings state. At times, Binance has processed two-thirds of all digital currency trades, making it a vital power broker and intermediary in the crypto world.

Persons: Zhao, Binance, —, ” Locations: Iran, Cuba, Syria, United States

☆ Cryptocurrency Prices Surge, Driven by a Potential Bitcoin Fund
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | More About David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Shortly before Mr. Bankman-Fried’s verdict landed on Nov. 2, the price of Bitcoin surpassed $35,000, its highest level since an industry meltdown in 2022. Crypto investors are growing optimistic that the Securities and Exchange Commission will approve an exchange traded fund, or E.T.F., that tracks the price of Bitcoin, analysts said. The fund would trade on traditional stock exchanges and offer an easy way for people to invest in cryptocurrencies, potentially bringing a wave of money into the industry. that seemed to pave the way for it to offer the Bitcoin product. And last week, BlackRock, a giant money manager, filed paperwork to establish a similar E.T.F.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Bankman, ” Organizations: Mr, Securities and Exchange, BlackRock Locations: Manhattan

☆ Inside the early-morning line to see Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | More About David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal fraud trial was not the only high-stakes struggle that unfolded this past month at the federal courthouse in Manhattan. Over five weeks, the trial — with its mix of cryptocurrency intrigue and tabloid-worthy romance — attracted an unusually varied crew of reporters, crypto YouTubers, documentary filmmakers and aspiring influencers. Everyone wanted to sit in the gallery to see Mr. Bankman-Fried in the flesh. If someone lined up outside at 5 a.m., someone else would try to make it by 4 a.m. the next day. The following evening, a freelance journalist showed up just after 10:30 p.m. and huddled in the chill until the courthouse doors opened nine hours later.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried Locations: Manhattan, London, New York

Sam Bankman-Fried, the tousle-haired mogul who founded the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, was convicted on Thursday of seven charges of fraud and conspiracy after a monthlong trial that laid bare the rampant hubris and risk-taking across the crypto industry. Mr. Bankman-Fried became a symbol of crypto’s excesses last year when FTX collapsed and he was charged with stealing as much as $10 billion from customers to finance political contributions, venture capital investments and other extravagant spending. A jury of nine women and three men took more than four hours of deliberation on Thursday to reach a verdict, convicting Mr. Bankman-Fried of wire fraud and conspiracy. Together the counts carry a maximum sentence of 110 years. Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, is expected to appeal.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, FTX, convicting Mr, He’s

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, the onetime cryptocurrency mogul, built his FTX crypto exchange into a “pyramid of deceit” resting on a “foundation of lies and false promises,” a federal prosecutor said in closing arguments on Wednesday at the criminal fraud trial. Over more than two hours in a Manhattan courtroom in the morning, Nicolas Roos, the prosecutor, used scathing language to paint Mr. Bankman-Fried as a liar and fraudster. And Mr. Bankman-Fried, who had testified during the trial in his own defense, had repeatedly dissembled and dodged questions, Mr. Roos said. Mr. Bankman-Fried “lied about big things and small things,” the prosecutor said, pointing out that the defendant said he “couldn’t recall” more than 140 times in response to questions on cross-examination. “It was uncomfortable to hear,” Mr. Roos said.

Persons: Sam Bankman Fried, ”, Nicolas Roos, Roos, dissembled, Fried “, “, Mr, Bankman Organizations: Mr Locations: Manhattan

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

“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

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.

The witnesses have 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. 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.

From the moment his cryptocurrency empire collapsed in November, Sam Bankman-Fried didn’t stop talking. Against the advice of his defense lawyers, Mr. Bankman-Fried embarked on a lengthy press tour to explain the failure of his FTX cryptocurrency exchange, giving interviews to TV anchors and obscure Twitter personalities. On Friday, Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, made an even riskier call: He took the stand to testify at his criminal fraud trial in federal court in New York. But he also acknowledged that he had made missteps, citing “significant oversights” that hurt FTX customers. Wearing a gray suit and purple tie, his famously tousled hair cut short by a fellow inmate at the Brooklyn jail where he is detained, Mr. Bankman-Fried said he “made a number of small mistakes, and a number of larger mistakes.”

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried, “ Organizations: Brooklyn Locations: New York

The wait for Sam Bankman-Fried’s testimony will be a little longer. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan, who is overseeing the disgraced crypto mogul’s federal criminal trial, sent jurors home on Thursday afternoon just before Mr. Bankman-Fried was expected to take the stand. Judge Kaplan opted instead for a hearing to discuss pending testimony from Mr. Bankman-Fried, who founded the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, with regard to his reliance on company lawyers in making decisions. The jury will return on Friday, when Mr. Bankman-Fried is expected to testify. Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Judge Lewis A, Kaplan, Fried, Judge Kaplan, FTX

On the second day of Sam Bankman-Fried’s fraud trial this month, one of the lawyers for the cryptocurrency mogul delivered an emphatic message to the jury. He lied repeatedly, they said, running roughshod over his top lieutenants and directing them to treat customer deposits as if FTX were a piggy bank. The testimony has dealt a blow to Mr. Bankman-Fried’s “good faith” defense, which will be put to the test this week. At a hearing on Wednesday, Mark Cohen, a defense lawyer, confirmed that Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, would take the stand. But given the prosecution’s success in building its case, legal experts said, it was all but inevitable that Mr. Bankman-Fried would want to tell the jury his side of the story.

Persons: Sam Bankman, FTX, Bankman, Mark Cohen Locations: Manhattan

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, is planning to testify at his criminal fraud trial in Manhattan, his lawyer said on Wednesday. Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, is likely to begin testifying on Thursday, after federal prosecutors call their final witness in the morning. “Our client is going to be testifying,” Mr. Cohen said at the hearing. Mr. Bankman-Fried is charged with orchestrating a sweeping scheme to steal as much as $10 billion in deposits from customers of FTX. Mr. Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to seven charges of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Mark Cohen, Bankman, ” Mr, Cohen, Fried Organizations: Prosecutors Locations: Manhattan, FTX

☆ ‘Oof’: Sam Bankman-Fried’s Trial Reveals Inside Details of How FTX Died
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | More About David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On the morning of Nov. 6, Nishad Singh, a top executive at the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, sent a message in a group chat with two senior colleagues. Caroline Ellison, who ran FTX’s sister hedge fund, Alameda Research, replied with an image of a sad face. The company is bankrupt, and Mr. Singh and Ms. Ellison, both 28, have pleaded guilty to fraud and testified in court against their onetime friend. At the trial, prosecutors have used that testimony as the basis for an unvarnished look inside FTX’s rapid unraveling — a frantic week in November that ended in one of the largest corporate collapses in recent history. The prosecutors have even put up a November calendar to help jurors follow the fast-paced sequence of events.

Persons: Nishad Singh, Caroline Ellison, Sam Bankman, Singh, Ellison Organizations: Alameda Research Locations: Manhattan

☆ Crypto Influencers and ‘Degenerates’ Flock to Sam Bankman-Fried’s Trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | More About David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A parade of powerful legal minds has gathered over the last three weeks at the criminal trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced cryptocurrency mogul. A prolific YouTuber with a channel devoted to crypto, Taco, 39, has become an unlikely staple in the crowd of lawyers, reporters and curious observers who line up every morning before sunrise to get a seat at Mr. Bankman-Fried’s trial in downtown Manhattan. “Everyone talks about how important crypto is to them,” Taco said. “But then they don’t go to any events.”Taco declined to reveal his real name, citing privacy concerns. But he said he felt compelled to show up for “technically sort of like the trial of the century.”

Persons: Sam Bankman, Damian Williams, Robert Mueller III, Donald J, Taco, Bankman, regaling, ” Taco, I’m, ” Organizations: Trump, Mr Locations: Manhattan

In the courtroom, the personal dynamics between Mr. Bankman-Fried and his friends have become a vital component of the case. Prosecutors have shown photographs of Mr. Bankman-Fried socializing with Mr. Yedidia and other onetime confidants, seeking to draw out testimony about the relationships at the heart of FTX. On the witness stand, Mr. Bankman-Fried’s old allies have mostly avoided looking at him. “You can anticipate that at closing, this is one of the things that the United States is going to harp on: These were people who were close personal friends of S.B.F.,” said Daniel Silva, a former federal prosecutor. He has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering, and faces what would amount to a life sentence if convicted.

Persons: Fried, Yedidia, Bankman, ”, Daniel Silva, ” Mr Organizations: Prosecutors Locations: FTX’s, Bahamas, FTX, United States

Before it all collapsed last fall, the cryptocurrency mogul Sam Bankman-Fried was at the center of a global business empire. The 31-year-old mogul started his first company in the San Francisco Bay Area, before moving to Hong Kong and then to the Bahamas, where his FTX cryptocurrency exchange was based until it filed for bankruptcy in November. Along the way, Mr. Bankman-Fried left his mark on luxury homes in Washington and on the Bahamian island of New Providence, and splashed FTX’s logo on a basketball arena in Miami. Mr. Bankman-Fried is now on trial in federal court in Manhattan, where he faces seven counts of wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried Organizations: San Francisco Bay Area Locations: San Francisco Bay, Hong Kong, Bahamas, Washington, New Providence, Miami, Manhattan

☆ What to Know About Sam Bankman-Fried’s Fraud Trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | More About David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Mr. Bankman-Fried oversaw two core businesses: FTX and a hedge fund called Alameda Research. Alameda was, at least in theory, simply a large customer of FTX that used the platform to trade digital currencies. But according to prosecutors, Mr. Bankman-Fried allowed Alameda to borrow a virtually limitless amount from FTX and then funneled much of that money into other projects. For example, regulators say, Alameda used customer funds to make large loans to FTX executives, who spent the money on political donations. Mr. Bankman-Fried faces an uphill battle in court.

Persons: Fried, FTX, —, Caroline Ellison, Nishad Singh, Gary Wang —, Ryan Salame, Lewis A, Kaplan, Judge Kaplan Organizations: Alameda Research, Alameda Locations: FTX, United States, Alameda, Fried, Brooklyn

Follow live updates on the Sam Bankman-Fried fraud trial. A year ago, Sam Bankman-Fried was a fixture on magazine covers and in the halls of Congress, a tousle-haired crypto billionaire who hobnobbed with movie stars and bankrolled political campaigns. The charges against Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, have put the rest of the crypto industry on trial with him. He has emerged as a symbol of the unrestrained hubris and shady deal-making that turned cryptocurrencies into a multitrillion-dollar industry during the pandemic. The demise of FTX in November helped burst that bubble, sending other high-profile companies into bankruptcy and provoking a government crackdown.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Fried Locations: Manhattan

Mr. Powell’s public calendar shows that he and Mr. Bankman-Fried met as planned. And Mr. Wetjen went on to send the Fed chair two policy papers that FTX had recently published, according to emails obtained through a public records request. “Hope you’re finding these useful!” Mr. Wetjen wrote. According to newly released records, Mr. Wetjen managed to gain access to a range of federal officials. And public calendars show that Mr. Bankman-Fried went on to meet with another top financial regulator, Martin Gruenberg, head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Persons: Jerome H, Powell, Sam Bankman, ” Mr, Mark Wetjen, Fried, Wetjen, FTX, Hope, Mr, Lael Brainard, Martin Gruenberg Organizations: Federal Reserve, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Fed, White, National Economic Council, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Locations: Washington

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried’s Parents Sued by FTX
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( David Yaffe-Bellany | More About David Yaffe-Bellany | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A spokeswoman for Mr. Bankman and Ms. Fried did not immediately respond to a request for comment. FTX filed for bankruptcy protection in November, after a run on deposits exposed an $8 billion hole in the exchange’s accounts. He has pleaded not guilty, and is scheduled to go on trial on Oct. 3FTX’s collapse fueled scrutiny of Mr. Bankman and Ms. Fried. According to the lawsuit, Mr. Bankman helped arrange hundreds of millions of dollars in loans to top employees and was listed on an internal document as a member of the firm’s management team. In messages cited in the lawsuit, Mr. Bankman complained that he was receiving a salary of only $200,000 a year, as opposed to the $1 million he thought he would get.

Persons: Bankman, Fried, FTX, “ Gee, Sam I, ”, Larry David Locations: Manhattan

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