MARCH 28, 2024, UPDATE:
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for a cryptocurrency fraud that a prosecutor has described as one of the biggest financial frauds in U.S. history. Federal Judge Lewis A. Kaplan imposed the sentence Thursday (March 28, 2024) in a packed Manhattan courtroom. The 32-year-old Bankman-Fried was convicted in November of fraud and conspiracy charges brought after his once-soaring cryptocurrency trading platform and related companies collapsed into bankruptcy. Bankman-Fried was extradited to the U.S. in December 2022, five years after he started his businesses with plans to revolutionize the emerging cryptocurrency industry.
MARCH 28, 2024:
NEW YORK (AP) — Former crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried faces the potential of decades in prison when he is sentenced Thursday (March 28, 2024) for his role in the 2022 collapse of FTX, once one of the world’s most popular platforms for trading digital currency.
Bankman-Fried, 32, was convicted in November of fraud and conspiracy — a dramatic fall from a year earlier when he and his companies seemed to be riding a crest of success that resulted in a Super Bowl advertisement and celebrity endorsements from stars like quarterback Tom Brady and comedian Larry David.
A jury found that Bankman-Fried illegally used money from FTX depositors to cover his expenses, which included purchasing luxury properties in the Caribbean, alleged bribes to Chinese officials and private planes.
Prosecutors recommended a prison sentence of 40 to 50 years.
“The defendant victimized tens of thousands of people and companies, across several continents, over a period of multiple years. He stole money from customers who entrusted it to him; he lied to investors; he sent fabricated documents to lenders; he pumped millions of dollars in illegal donations into our political system; and he bribed foreign officials. Each of these crimes is worthy of a lengthy sentence,” prosecutors told Judge Lewis A. Kaplan in a court filing.
Bankman-Fried’s attorneys, friends and family have urged leniency, saying he is unlikely to reoffend again. They also say FTX’s investors have largely recovered their funds — a claim disputed by bankruptcy lawyers, FTX and its creditors.
“Mr. Bankman-Fried continues to live a life of delusion,” wrote John Ray, the CEO of FTX who has been cleaning up the bankrupt company. “The ‘business’ he left on November 11, 2022 was neither solvent nor safe.”
Two weeks ago, Bankman-Fried attorney Marc Mukasey attacked a probation office recommendation of 100 years in prison, saying a sentence of that length would be “grotesque” and “barbaric.”
He urged the judge to sentence Bankman-Fried to a term of five to 6 1/2 years in prison.
“Sam is not the ‘evil genius’ depicted in the media or the greedy villain described at trial,” Mukasey said, calling his client a “first-time, non-violent offender.”
Bankman-Fried was worth billions of dollars on paper as the co-founder and CEO of FTX, which was the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world at one time.
FTX allowed investors to buy dozens of virtual currencies, from Bitcoin to more obscure ones like Shiba Inu Coin. Flush with billions of dollars of investors’ cash, Bankman-Fried took out a Super Bowl advertisement to promote his business and bought the naming rights to an arena in Miami.
But the collapse of cryptocurrency prices in 2022 took its toll on FTX, and ultimately led to its downfall. FTX’s hedge fund affiliate, known as Alameda Research, had bought billions of dollars of various crypto investments that lost considerable amounts of value in 2022. Bankman-Fried tried to plug the holes in Alameda’s balance sheet with FTX customer funds.
Three other people from Bankman-Fried’s inner circle pleaded guilty to related crimes and testified at his trial.
The biggest name among the three was Caroline Ellison, once the girlfriend of Bankman-Fried. Ellison described Bankman-Fried as a calculating individual who knew that he was likely committing crimes when he directed the use of customer funds. Two other onetime friends of Bankman-Fried, Gary Wang and Nishad Singh, also testified they felt they were directed by Bankman-Fried to commit fraud.
NOVEMBER 3, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — A New York jury has convicted FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried of fraud charges. The 31-year-old California man was convicted Thursday (Nov. 2, 2023) in Manhattan federal court by jurors who rejected his testimony that he didn’t defraud thousands of customers worldwide who counted on him to safeguard the billions of dollars they deposited in accounts. Bankman-Fried has been jailed since August, when a judge concluded he’d tried to influence prospective trial witnesses. He was extradited to the United States last December from the Bahamas, where he had operated the FTX cryptocurrency exchange and a hedge fund, among other businesses.
OCTOBER 27, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has begun testifying at his fraud trial, saying the innovative business he had hoped would move the cryptocurrency ecosystem forward ended up hurting customers instead. The onetime cryptocurrency golden boy lost his businesses and his reputation as a pioneering entrepreneur when a rush of customers withdrew their money last year (2022), exposing that billions of dollars were missing. His much-anticipated testimony Friday (Oct. 27, 2023) became the centerpiece of a defense that insists Bankman-Fried had no criminal intent as he took actions that prosecutors say were directly to blame for the collapse last November of Bankman-Fried’s businesses.
OCTOBER 10, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — The trial of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has taken a star turn as his former fellow top executive and ex-girlfriend Caroline Ellison began testifying against him. Ellison’s highly anticipated turn on the witness stand in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday (Oct. 10, 2023) took place just before the trial broke for lunch, with Ellison blaming Bankman-Fried for crimes she admitted to last December in a cooperation deal. At one point, she was asked to identify Bankman-Fried in the courtroom. She stood up, scanning the courtroom, before spotting him in a row with his lawyers. She identified him, saying he was “over there wearing a suit.”
OCTOBER 4, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — A prosecutor accused FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried of stealing at least $10 billion from his customers as opening statements began in a federal court trial in New York City. Prosecutor Nathan Rehn said the 31-year-old California man defrauded thousands of investors and customers in his businesses by siphoning off their money for his own uses. Defense lawyer Mark Cohen insisted Bankman-Fried didn’t steal from anyone. He was brought to the United States from the Bahamas after his arrest last December (2022). Originally under house arrest, he was jailed in August after a judge concluded he’d tried to influence trial witnesses. He has pleaded not guilty.
AUGUST 14, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been sent to jail after a bail hearing in New York City. Federal Judge Lewis A. Kaplan issued the order Friday (Aug. 11, 2023), saying there was probable cause that Bankman-Fried had tried to tamper with two key witnesses against him and maybe others. Bankman-Fried was taken from a courtroom in handcuffs. Prosecutors had pushed for his incarceration. His lawyers insisted he shouldn’t be jailed for trying to protect his reputation. The 31-year-old onetime crypto whiz had been living at his parent’s California home since his December extradition from the Bahamas. He was staying at home to comply with a $250 million bail package severely restricting his internet and phone usage.
JUNE 16, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried may face two criminal trials after a federal judge granted a request by prosecutors to delay a trial on some of the charges until next year. Bankman-Fried faces trial in October 2023 on charges brought against him last year. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan in Manhattan set a March 11 trial date for him on newer charges filed earlier this year. Earlier in the day, Bankman-Fried was in court as his lawyers argued for the dismissal of charges against him. Kaplan was skeptical about some of their arguments, telling one attorney he’d made an “extraordinarily imaginative argument.” Prosecutors say the man once praised as a cryptocurrency visionary cheated investors and looted customer deposits. Kaplan did not immediately rule.
MAY 9, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is seeking a dismissal of criminal charges against him, saying prosecutors have improperly turned civil and regulatory issues into federal crimes. Lawyers for the onetime head of a multibillion dollar cryptocurrency exchange that was promoted by famous athletes and actors said in papers filed late Monday (May 9, 2023) in Manhattan federal court that the U.S. government had a “dramatic — and troubling” response to a broad market crash in cryptocurrency last year that affected every corner of the market. They said Bankman-Fried’s non-U.S. FTX company lasted far longer than others in the industry before it entered bankruptcy in November 2022.
MARCH 28, 2023:
Extended version:
FEBRUARY 23, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried faces additional fraud charges in a rewritten indictment that was unsealed in New York federal court. The new charges were included in an updated indictment unveiled Thursday (Feb. 23, 2023). It wasn’t known when Bankman-Fried would return to Manhattan for an arraignment. He has already pleaded not guilty to charges that he cheated investors and looted customer deposits at FTX, his cryptocurrency platform. He is free on a $250 million personal recognizance bond. The bail arrangement allows him to live with his parents in Palo Alto, California.
FEBRUARY 9, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and former CEO of FTX, has been unusually talkative following the November 2022 collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange and his subsequent indictment on fraud and other charges. He’s given a series of interviews intended to present his version of events and used social media to criticize the new management of FTX. The atypical chattiness for a criminal defendant is likely causing Bankman-Fried’s attorneys to scratch their heads, or worse. Prosecutors can use any statements, tweets or other communications against him at his trial, which is scheduled for October. Bankman-Fried will appear before the judge hearing his case in New York Thursday (Feb. 9, 2023) on a bail-related matter.
JANUARY 9, 2023:
NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — At a recent celebration of Christmas in the Bahamas, Bishop Lawrence Rolle sang about a half dozen songs, mostly Afro-Caribbean gospel songs. But one number stood out Rolle’s social media hit about the sudden collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. “The money is gone,” Rolle sang repeatedly, a chant echoed by his audience of children and parents. FTX was supposed to be the crown jewel of the Bahamian government’s push to be the global destination for all things crypto. Instead, FTX is bankrupt and Bahamians are trying to figure out what’s next for their country and whether their national experiment to be the world’s foremost crypto hub has failed.
JANUARY 3, 2023:
NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty in Manhattan federal court to charges that he cheated investors and looted customer deposits on his cryptocurrency trading platform. Bankman-Fried entered the plea Tuesday (Jan. 3, 2023) in his first appearance before a judge who would preside over any trial. He is accused of defrauding investors by illegally diverting massive sums of customer money from FTX to make lavish real estate purchases, donate money to politicians and make risky trades at Alameda Research, his cryptocurrency hedge fund trading firm. Bankman-Fried was released from custody with electronic monitoring two weeks ago to await trial at his parents’ house in Palo Alto, California.
DECEMBER 22, 2022, UPDATE:
NEW YORK (AP) — A judge says cryptocurrency entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried can post $250 million bond and live in his parents’ home in California while he awaits trial. Bankman-Fried is accused of swindling investors and looting customer deposits on his FTX trading platform. He is expected to be released Thursday (Dec. 22, 2022) after an electronic monitoring device is attached. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos said in U.S. District Court in New York that the 30-year-old Bankman-Fried “perpetrated a fraud of epic proportions.” Magistrate Judge Gabriel W. Gorenstein largely agreed to bail terms proposed by lawyers on both sides.
DECEMBER 22, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — A federal prosecutor says two associates of Sam Bankman-Fried have pleaded guilty to criminal charges in cooperation deals related to the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said Wednesday night (Dec. 21, 2022) that Carolyn Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research, a trading firm started by Bankman-Fried, and Gary Wang, who co-founded FTX along with Bankman-Fried, pleaded guilty to charges “related to their roles in the fraud that contributed to FTX’s collapse.” The guilty pleas were announced as Bankman-Fried was being flown to the U.S. from the Bahamas by U.S. law enforcement to answer to charges tied to his role in FTX’s failure.
DECEMBER 21, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — Sam Bankman-Fried told a Bahamian court Wednesday (Dec. 21, 2022) that he has agreed to be extradited and is expected to be sent to the U.S. later in the day to face criminal charges related to the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. The former FTX CEO appeared at a Magistrate’s Court and is expected to head to Odyssey Aviation to return to the United States, according to Bahamian news organization Our News. Bahamian authorities arrested Bankman-Fried last week at the request of the U.S. government.
DECEMBER 20, 2022:
UNDATED (AP)- Sam Bankman-Fried may be ready to come to the U.S. to face criminal charges related to the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX following a chaotic court appearance in the Bahamas. A lawyer for Bankman-Fried was quoted as saying Monday (Dec. 19, 2022) that the disgraced FTX founder has agreed to be extradited to the United States. A court hearing was stopped earlier in the day when his attorneys said it was premature for him to stand before the court. Jerone Roberts, a local defense attorney for Bankman-Fried, told The New York Times that lawyers will prepare the necessary documents for extradition. It was not immediately clear when extradition could occur.
DECEMBER 13, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. government charged Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and former CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, with a host of financial crimes on Tuesday (Dec. 13, 2022). Federal prosecutors allege he intentionally deceived customers and investors to enrich himself and others, while playing a central role in FTX’s multibillion-dollar collapse. The indictment says that beginning in 2019 Bankman-Fried devised “a scheme and artifice to defraud” FTX’s customers and investors, diverting their money to pay expenses and debts at his crypto hedge fund, Alameda Research, and to make lavish real estate purchases and large political donations. Separately, the SEC filed civil charges against Bankman-Fried, alleging he defrauded investors and used proceeds to buy real estate for himself and his family.
DECEMBER 12, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — The former CEO of failed cryptocurrency firm FTX Sam Bankman-Fried has been arrested in the Bahamas at the request of U.S. authorities. That’s according U.S. and Bahamian authorities Monday (Dec. 12, 2022). Bankman-Fried has been under criminal investigation by U.S. and Bahamian authorities following the collapse last month of FTX. The firm filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11, 2022,when it ran out of money after the cryptocurrency equivalent of a bank run. Bankman-Fried’s arrest comes just a day before he was due to testify in front of the House Financial Services Committee, along with FTX’s current CEO, John Ray III.
NEW YORK (AP) — The House Financial Services Committee plans to hold a hearing into the collapse of crypto exchange FTX on Tuesday (Dec. 13, 2022), but its star witness will be missing. Sam Bankman-Fried was scheduled to testify in front of the House Financial Services Committee, along with the company’s current CEO, John Ray III. However Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas late Monday, and U.S. authorities said they plan to unseal charges against him on Tuesday. FTX filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11, 2022, when the firm ran out of money after the cryptocurrency equivalent of a bank run.
DECEMBER 1, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — The former CEO of the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX says that he did not “knowingly” misuse customers’ funds. He also says he believes his millions of angry customers will eventually be made whole. The comments from Sam Bankman-Fried came during an interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin at conference put on by The New York Times. Bankman-Fried has done a handful of media interviews since FTX collapsed in mid-November, but Wednesday’s (Nov. 30, 2022) was his first video interview since it filed for bankruptcy protection on Nov. 11, 2022. FTX failed in the cryptocurrency version of a bank run.
NOVEMBER 25, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — The company tasked with locking down the assets in the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX says it has managed to recover and secure $740 million in assets so far. That’s a fraction of the potential billions likely missing from bankrupt company’s coffers. The numbers were disclosed on Wednesday by cryptocurrency custodial company BitGo, which FTX hired in the hours after the company filed for bankruptcy on November 11, 2022.
NOVEMBER 17, 2022:
UNDATED (AP)- The new CEO of the collapsed cryptocurrency trading firm FTX, who oversaw Enron’s bankruptcy, said he has never seen such a “complete failure” of corporate control. John Ray III, in a filing with the U.S. bankruptcy court for the district of Delaware, said there was a “complete absence of trustworthy financial information.” Ray was named CEO of FTX less than a week ago when the company filed for bankruptcy protection and its CEO and founder Sam Bankman-Fried resigned.
NOVEMBER 14, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — Sam Bankman-Fried received numerous plaudits as he rapidly achieved superstar status as the head of cryptocurrency exchange FTX: the savior of crypto, the newest force in Democratic politics and potentially the world’s first trillionaire. Now the comments about the 30-year-old Bankman-Fried aren’t so kind after FTX filed for bankruptcy protection Friday, leaving his investors and customers feeling duped and many others in the crypto world fearing the repercussions. Bankfried-Fried himself could face civil or criminal charges. The ultimate impact of FTX’s bankruptcy is uncertain, but its failure will likely result in the destruction of billions of dollars of wealth.
NOVEMBER 11, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — Embattled cryptocurrency exchange FTX, short billions of dollars, is seeking bankruptcy protection following its collapse this week. FTX Trading said its CEO and founder Sam Bankman-Fried has resigned. FTX, an affiliated hedge fund Alameda Research, and dozens of other companies filed a bankruptcy petition in Delaware on Friday morning (Nov. 11, 2022). FTX had agreed earlier this week to sell itself to bigger rival Binance after experiencing the cryptocurrency equivalent of a bank run, but the deal fell through. Customers fled the exchange after becoming concerned about whether FTX had sufficient capital.
NOVEMBER 9, 2022:
NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin slumped to a two-year low and other digital assets sold off Wednesday (Nov. 9, 2022) following the sudden collapse of crypto exchange FTX Trading. A day earlier, FTX agreed to sell itself to Binance after experiencing the cryptocurrency equivalent of a bank run. Customers fled the exchange after becoming concerned about whether FTX had sufficient capital. Bitcoin traded around $17,645, and overnight fell to its lowest level since December 2020. Just a year ago, bitcoin hit an all-time high of $68,990. Ethereum, the second most actively traded digital currency, fell 10%. Crypto exchange Coinbase and the online trading platform Robinhood also fell in early trading.
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