• FTX bankruptcy proceedings since November 2022
• Start of negotiations on October 2, 2023
• Prosecution in the “classic fast-track procedure” according to lawyers
Sam Bankman-Fried is an American entrepreneur. In 2019 he founded the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. It has been in insolvency proceedings since November last year. In December, Bankman-Fried was arrested and extradited to the United States from the Bahamas, where he lived and where the company was based. The public prosecutor’s office has accused him of numerous crimes.
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Possible sentence: Life imprisonment
The indictment is long. In all, the former FTX CEO faces thirteen counts, including aggravated fraud, securities fraud, illegal campaign finance, bribery, money laundering and conspiracy. In summary, he is said to have mainly stolen customer deposits in the billions to enrich himself personally. The funds are also said to have been used to keep the analysis company Alameda Research running.
However, according to Business Insider, the 31-year-old pleads not guilty. The trial is scheduled to begin on October 2 this year. The public prosecutor expects the trial to last about four weeks. The list of alleged offenses is so serious that Bankman-Fried faces life imprisonment. At the moment the entrepreneur lives with his parents in California. He was temporarily released on bail of $250 million, according to the Süddeutsche newspaper. He still has to wear an ankle bracelet.
Crypto crash in 2022 has hit many trading venues
In a motion, Sam Bankman-Fried’s attorneys asked the Manhattan judge to dismiss the charges of unauthorized wire transfers, bribery and bank fraud. The crypto crash in 2022 hit the whole industry hard. “The market crash brought down many of the key players in this sector, not just FTX,” argues the defense in its filing.
In addition, the prosecutor filed the charges just a month after the collapse of the crypto exchange. The lawyers’ argument is that the judiciary was trying to fast-track traditional civil issues into crimes. The legal representatives want to dismiss a total of ten out of thirteen charges with their application.
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