Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has been arrested in the Bahamas. The former industry titan appeared in court to face an extradition order from the U.S. on federal charges of wire fraud, conspiracy, and other allegations. In an earlier statement, Bankman’s lawyer, Mark S Cohen, said, “Mr. Bankman-Fried is reviewing the charges with his legal team and considering all of his legal options.”
Who is Sam Bankman-Fried, and Why he is Arrested
Sam Bankman-Fried is accused of ‘engineering one of the biggest financial frauds in American history.” The US Department of Justice charged Bankman-Fried with eight counts, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud on customers and lenders, money laundering, and campaign finance violations. Damian Williams, US attorney for the Southern District of New York, described it as ‘one of the biggest financial frauds in American history.’
The 30-year-old former billionaire defrauded investors by building a company called Alameda Research – a private trading firm. He used FTX customers’ deposits to pay debts and expenses; the failure of the Bahamas-based FTX resulted in billions of dollars of potential losses to many creditors, including retail investors. Earlier, a judge denied Fried’s bail application, saying he represented a flight risk and should remain in jail.
Bankman’s Interview with a Leading Publisher
Earlier this month, a big name in British media sat down with Sam Bankman to hear his story. Bankman acknowledged the mistakes made at the firm and said, “I didn’t knowingly commit fraud, I don’t think I committed fraud, I didn’t want any of this to happen. I was certainly not nearly as competent as I thought I was.” However, he denied the allegations of using investors’ funds, saying, “This is not true.”
Also read: Crypto Hackers Stole more than $600 million making it the Biggest Crypto Theft of the History
