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☆ North Korea and Russia are ramping up trade in oil, coal and weapons as Ukraine war sanctions send Moscow to pariah state
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A new CSIS report analyzed satellite imagery that suggests significantly increased trade between Russia and North Korea. Wartime sanctions have pushed Moscow to turn to railroad trade with Pyongyang, the researchers wrote. Trade between North Korea and Russia hit roughly $48 million in 2019, International Trade Centre data compiled by the Wall Street Journal shows. That dropped to nearly zero in 2021, with North Korea closing off its borders during the pandemic. Similarly, over recent years, Russia has sided with North Korea in geopolitical conversations over sanctions on the Kim Jong-un's regime.

☆ Proud Boys defendants plan to subpoena Trump to force him to testify in their January 6 riot trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Lawyers representing the Proud Boys plan to subpoena Trump to testify in the January 6 trial. Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and four other members have been charged with seditious conspiracy. "We're calling on Donald Trump to take the stand," a defense attorney said. Proud Boys' lawyers are seeking the federal government's help to serve the subpoena, according to Politico. Prosecutors have said that Proud Boys' members responded to Trump's calls to his supporters to come "protest" on January 6 when Congress met to certify the results.

☆ Stanford law professor, researcher co-signed Bankman-Fried's bond -court records
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Luc Cohen | Thomson Reuters | Reports On The New York Federal Courts. Previously Worked As A Correspondent In Venezuela | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, Feb 15 (Reuters) - A former dean of Stanford's law school and a computer science researcher at the university co-signed indicted FTX cryptocurrency exchange founder Sam Bankman-Fried's bond, according to court records made public on Wednesday. His parents are both professors at Stanford Law School. On Jan. 25, an individual named Larry Kramer signed a $500,000 bond to ensure Bankman-Fried's return to court, and an individual named Andreas Paepcke signed a $200,000 bond, the newly-unredacted records showed. According to Stanford's website, Kramer is a former dean of the law school while Paepcke is a computer science researcher. The bond represents the amount of money Kramer and Paepcke would be liable to pay if Bankman-Fried does not return to court.

☆ We just learned the names of the 2 people secretly guaranteeing Sam Bankman-Fried's $250 million bond
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Larry Kramer and Andreas Paepcke are the two previously anonymous sponsors of Samuel Bankman-Fried's $250 million bond. A federal judge sided with Insider and other media organizations and made their names public. Larry Kramer, a former dean of Stanford University's law school, contributed $500,000 to the bond, according to court records unsealed Wednesday afternoon. Bankman-Fried's parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, who are both professors at Stanford University's law school, have also contributed to the bond. He also said he had no business interest in the $500,000 he contributed towards Bankman-Fried's bond.

[1/4] Former FTX Chief Executive Sam Bankman-Fried, who faces fraud charges over the collapse of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange, departs from his court hearing at a federal court in New York City's Manhattan, U.S. January 3, 2023. REUTERS/David Dee Delgado/Feb 8 (Reuters) - Failed crypto firm FTX received court approval on Wednesday to issue subpoenas to its founder Sam Bankman-Fried and members of his family as part of the company's investigation into "misappropriated and stolen" funds. FTX said in court papers filed Wednesday that most of the subpoena targets had begun cooperating with its investigation. FTX said that it is still in discussions with Ellison and that Sam Bankman-Fried "remains non-responsive." Mind the Gap has previously said that Sam Bankman-Fried did not make any direct contributions to the organization but did donate to some of its recommended programs.

☆ The criminal case against Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison could put jilted FTX customers in the backseat
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

The parallel criminal case against SBF, Caroline Ellison, and Gary Wang may be to blame. But they told a Delaware bankruptcy court recently that they hit a roadblock, accusing Sam Bankman-Fried and those close to him of not playing ball with them. The criminal case takes priorityEllison and Wang separately reached plea deals with federal prosecutors in Manhattan, copping to charges including wire fraud and conspiracy. But, experts told Insider, the deals require them to focus on working with prosecutors in the criminal case — even if it could be at the expense of other parties. But when both criminal and civil proceedings are ongoing, it's the criminal case that goes first in line, Snyder said.

☆ The house that helped secure Sam Bankman-Fried's $250 million bail package reportedly sits on land his parents leased from Stanford
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Sam Bankman-Fried's parents lease the land for their home from Stanford, the LA Times reports. They'd put up the $4 million home as collateral for the former FTX CEO's $250 million bail release. Bail terms are about flight-risk rather than if collateral can cover the full amount, legal experts said. The revelation once again prompts questions about how and why courts set bail terms, which are meant to ensure that a defendant doesn't flee while awaiting trial. Prosecutors are now also arguing that Bankman-Fried's bail restrictions must go further, and impose limits on whom he communicates with and how.

☆ SBF's mom, Caroline Ellison, and former FTX executives are not cooperating with the investigation into the disgraced crypto exchange, filing says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Jennifer Sor | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

SBF, his mom, his brother, and key executives in his crypto empire aren't cooperating in the FTX bankruptcy case, according to a recent court filing. FTX lawyers said several key insiders have not responded or declined to give requested information related to the collapsed exchange. But discussions with Bankman-Fried's father and another FTX executive have been making progress, the filing said. In particular, former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison and FTX co-founder Gary Wang have declined to give FTX's lawyers requested information. However, discussions with Bankman-Fried's father Joseph Bankman and former FTX COO Zhe Wang have been making progress, the filing said.

FTX said in a court filing in Wilmington, Delaware, late on Wednesday that the DOJ's proposed review would only add cost and delay to its bankruptcy case. As part of its own investigation, FTX asked U.S. Bankruptcy Judge John Dorsey, who is overseeing its Chapter 11 proceedings, to help it secure documents from Bankman-Fried, members of his family and other insiders with information about FTX transactions that used "misappropriated and stolen" funds. FTX is also seeking information about political donations by Mind the Gap, a political action committee founded by Barbara Fried, and Guarding Against Pandemics, an advocacy organization founded by Sam Bankman-Fried and his brother, Gabriel Bankman-Fried. The U.S. Department of Justice's bankruptcy watchdog has called for an independent investigation into its collapse, a request that received backing from a bipartisan group of U.S. senators. Sam Bankman-Fried, who has been accused of stealing billions of dollars from FTX customers to pay debts incurred by his crypto-focused hedge fund, has pleaded not guilty to fraud charges.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried's new dog is reportedly trained to attack would-be assailants with a secret code word
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sam Bankman-Fried's new dog can attack with a single command, per Forbes. His parents reportedly gave him the dog, a German shepherd named Sandor. Bankman-Fried has said in court filings that his family has faced "harassment and threats." The former FTX CEO's animal companion, named Sandor, pounces in response to a "secret word," according to Forbes. The 75-pound Sandor, whose name evokes the meaning "defender of men," was a gift from Bankman-Fried's parents, per a Puck interview.

☆ FTX wants to ask Sam Bankman-Fried's parents and brother if they received any money from the crypto exchange
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Court documents show FTX aims to question Sam Bankman-Fried's parents and brother about their personal wealth, per Bloomberg. The family should provide financial documents about any money they may have received from the company, FTX lawyers said. The bankruptcy judge still has to approve the request before FTX lawyers can move forward. Both of Bankman-Fried's parents have been involved with the company. In addition, Reuters reported in November that a $16.4 million house in the Bahamas listed Bankman-Fried's parents as signatories and was described in property records as a "vacation home."

☆ Ex-Proud Boy says group 'celebrated' violence ahead of U.S. Capitol riot
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Andrew Goudsward | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

“I can’t say it was ever overtly encouraged, but it was never discouraged, and when it happened it was celebrated,” Greene said of the Proud Boys' use of violence. Prosecutors allege that Pezzola was among the first rioters to breach the Capitol building after shattering a window with a stolen police shield. Lawyers for the defendants have argued that there was no plan to storm the Capitol and Proud Boys leadership directed members at previous rallies to only respond to left-wing counter protesters in self-defense. Greene acknowledged that he did not know many of the defendants and was not directed to use force by members of the Proud Boys leadership ahead of the riot at the Capitol. He described a “rising anger” in the crowd as Proud Boy leaders led the group in chants outside the Capitol.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried had a 'security incident' when 3 men drove into a metal barricade outside his parents' multimillion Bay Area home, his lawyer said
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyer said the ex-crypto mogul and his parents had been subjected to harassment and threats. This includes a recent "security incident" at his parents' Bay Area home, the lawyer said. "Recently, the Bankman-Frieds had a security incident at their home when a black car drove into the metal barricade set up outside their home," Everdell wrote. "This incident underscores the risk to the Bankman-Frieds' privacy and security," he said. In a filing from January 3, attorney Mark Cohen had said that Bankman-Fried's parents "have become the target of intense media scrutiny, harassment, and threats."

NEW YORK, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Eight major media outlets on Thursday asked the U.S. judge overseeing Sam Bankman-Fried's criminal case to make public the names of two people who helped guarantee the FTX cryptocurrency exchange founder's $250 million bond. Saying the public interest "cannot be overstated," lawyers for the outlets, including Reuters, said the public's right to know Bankman-Fried's guarantors outweighed their privacy and safety rights. Media seeking to identify Bankman-Fried's sureties also include the Associated Press, Bloomberg, CNBC, Wall Street Journal publisher Dow Jones, the Financial Times, Insider and the Washington Post. Cohen and Everdell also represented Maxwell in her criminal case. In seeking to keep the sureties' names under wraps, Bankman-Fried's lawyers said their client's parents, who co-signed the $250 million bond, had been harassed and received physical threats since FTX's early November collapse and bankruptcy.

Prosecutors began delivering opening arguments Thursday in the seditious conspiracy trial of former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and four other members of the far-right extremist group involved in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. After the election, Tarrio posted on social media that the presidency was being stolen and vowed that his group won't "go quietly," prosecutors said. Tarrio, prosecutors say, was aware of discussions around a plan to storm the Capitol and was involved in discussions about occupying buildings, including in the Capitol complex. The group helped rile up the crowd on the day of the rally and successfully led rioters to break past police barricades and into the Capitol, prosecutors said. A protester, who claims to be a member of the Proud Boys, confronts police officers outside the Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried says guards outside his parents' house stopped a vigilante who wanted to make a citizen's arrest
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sam Bankman-Fried said a citizen vigilante was stopped by security guards, per an interview in Puck. Bankman-Fried said people wanted to come to his parent's house and make a "citizen's arrest." Bankman-Fried told Teddy Schleifer, a reporter from Puck, that some people claimed they wanted to come to the house and make a citizen's arrest. As part of his bail terms, he is required to stay at his parent's house while he awaits trial. He told Schleifer he had not spoken to his ex-girlfriend, Caroline Ellison, or FTX co-founder Gary Wang.

[1/3] Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio speaks to members of the media as he leaves the D.C. Central Detention Facility where he had been held since September 2021, in Washington, U.S., January 14, 2022. All five Proud Boys defendants have pleaded not guilty and their attorneys will argue that they did not plot to block the peaceful transfer of power. "Dude, we're right in front of the Capitol right now. American citizens are storming the Capitol - taking it back right now," Biggs said on a video he recorded of himself. The indictment said Pezzola used the stolen shield to break a window, allowing members of the mob to enter the Capitol.

☆ Who are the 2 people who helped bail out Sam Bankman-Fried? Insider and other news organizations asked a judge to unseal their names.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

News organizations, including Insider, are asking a court to unveil Sam Bankman-Fried's bail backers. Bankman-Fried's lawyers told the court earlier this month that the backers of his release should stay secret for their "privacy and safety." The two other backers sponsored "separate bonds in lesser amounts," according to a court filing earlier this month by Bankman-Fried's lawyers. At Bankman-Fried's January 3 arraignment hearing, Kaplan had granted a request from Bankman-Fried's lawyers to keep the names and addresses of those two people under seal. Christian Everdell, one of Bankman-Fried's lawyers, also represented Maxwell in her criminal case.

☆ Who are the two people who helped bail out Sam Bankman-Fried? Insider and other media organizations are asking a judge to unveil the secret
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

News organizations, including Insider, are asking a court to unveil Sam Bankman-Fried's bail backers. Bankman-Fried's lawyers told the court earlier this month that the backers of his release should stay secret for their "privacy and safety." At Bankman-Fried's January 3 arraignment hearing, Kaplan had granted a request from Bankman-Fried's lawyers to keep the names and addresses of those two people under seal. Christian Everdell, one of Bankman-Fried's lawyers, also represented Maxwell in her criminal case. But lawyers representing the media organizations said the cases were significantly different.

☆ Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio's lawyer blames Trump for January 6, says the ex-president 'unleashed this mob on the Capitol'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

An attorney for Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio blamed Trump for the January 6 riot. "You will never see a message from Enrique Tarrio advocating to storm the Capitol," Jauregui said. In his opening statements, Jauregui also defended the Proud Boys, an organization founded in 2016 that calls itself "Western-chauvinist." Watchdog groups have labeled the Proud Boys as extremist and a hate group. "The Proud Boys think that America is the best."

☆ Proud Boys 'did not stand back' as Trump once said but 'mobilized' on January 6, prosecutor argues in trial opening
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The trial of Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and four other members opened Thursday. "Make no mistake…," read one text from Tarrio sent at 2:40 p.m. after rioters broke into the Capitol, according to prosecutors. "I'm proud as fuck at what we accomplished yesterday," read one message from Biggs, according to prosecutors. The DOJ also invoked comments made by Trump during a September 29, 2020, presidential debate, telling the Proud Boys to "stand back and stand by" when he was pushed to condemn white supremacists and militia groups. "When it became clear that Donald Trump would be voted out of office," McCullough said Thursday, "these men did not stand back, they did not stand by, instead, they mobilized."

☆ The Proud Boys jury hasn't even been seated yet, and the defense already says it's biased
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Proud Boys sedition-trial jury will be picked Monday, out of a pre-vetted pool of DC residents. The defense teams plan to make one last-ditch venue-change motion immediately after the jurors are seated, according to a person familiar with their strategy. "It's not surprising that these potential jurors knew something about the Proud Boys and January 6th, particularly since they live in DC," Suter told Insider. Those views included "preconceived beliefs that the Proud Boys are a 'dangerous armed group,' a 'hate filled group,' 'racists,' and other clearly biased views followed by assertions that they nonetheless can be fair." Defense lawyers are very likely spending the weekend pouring over any public records on the 45 or so prospects in the pool, Suter said.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried asks a judge to keep secret the identities of 2 people who helped secure his $250 million bail package
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Phil Rosen | Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyers requested for a judge to keep confidential the identities of two individuals who helped him secure bail. "If the two remaining sureties are publicly identified, they will likely be subjected to probing media scrutiny," the lawyers wrote. Sign up for our newsletter to get the inside scoop on what traders are talking about — delivered daily to your inbox. The two individuals signed on as sureties for Bankman-Fried's massive bail, which was granted after his parents put up their $4 million Palo Alto, California property as collateral. According to the lawyers' letter cited in the report, those individuals haven't signed on yet but intend to do so by January 5.

☆ Bankman-Fried's parents have been physically threatened, his lawyers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Sam Bankman-Fried's parents have been getting physical threats since the collapse of their son's now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange, his lawyers said on Tuesday. The disclosure was made in a filing in Manhattan federal court, where the lawyers asked that the names of two remaining sureties for Bankman-Fried's $250 million bond not be disclosed. Bankman-Fried has been required to live with his parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, with electronic monitoring since bail conditions were set. In Tuesday's filing, his lawyers said the parents "have in recent weeks become the target of intense media scrutiny, harassment, and threats. Among other things, Mr. Bankman-Fried's parents have received a steady stream of threatening correspondence, including communications expressing a desire that they suffer physical harm."

☆ The ultimate insider's guide to the dramatic downfall of Sam Bankman-Fried, Caroline Ellison, and FTX
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Sam Bankman-Fried is facing criminal charges and is expected to enter a plea on Jan. 3. Read Insider's coverage of Bankman-Fried:FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried gets by on 4 hours' sleep and multitasks on 6 screens. Now hit with 7 criminal charges, Ellison has pleaded guilty and expressed contrition before the New York federal court presiding over the criminal cases involving Bankman-Fried. Sam Bankman-Fried is in jail, but legal watchers are wondering: Where's ex-girlfriend Caroline Ellison? Sam Bankman-Fried hit with 8 criminal charges, including fraud and conspiracy for allegedly 'misappropriating' FTX customer fundsThe SEC has charged Sam Bankman-Fried and accused him of 'orchestrating a massive, years-long fraud'The criminal charges against Sam Bankman-Fried carry big penalties and jail time if proven, legal experts sayRead the CFTC complaint against FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried and his associates Caroline Ellison and Gary WangThe charges against Caroline Ellison, SBF, and FTX cofounder Gary Wang — in 60 seconds

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