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Crypto Tycoons
Former crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried faces the potential of decades in prison when he is sentenced on Thursday 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 victimised 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; h
The final stages of jury selection resumed on Wednesday at the fraud trial of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried in New York City. Opening statements were expected to begin by the early afternoon in Manhattan federal court, where Bankman-Fried has entered not guilty pleas to seven charges. Prosecutors say the California man defrauded thousands of investors and customers in his businesses by siphoning off their money for his own uses. Defense lawyers insist that their client had no criminal intent as he became famous in the crypto world while growing FTX and a related business, Alameda Research, into multibillion dollar heavyweights in the cryptocurrency industry. Attorneys and Judge Lewis A. Kaplan were reducing a pool of 45 prospective jurors to a jury of 12 with six alternates, who would sit through the duration of a trial projected to last up to six weeks. Bankman-Fried, 31, became a target of investigators when FTX collapsed last November amid a rush of customers seeking to recover
The cryptocurrency entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried can post USD 250 million bond and live in his parents' home in California while he awaits trial on charges that he swindled investors and looted customer deposits on his FTX trading platform, a judge said on Thursday. Assistant US Attorney Nicolas Roos said in US District Court in Manhattan that Bankman-Fried, 30, perpetrated a fraud of epic proportions. Roos proposed strict bail terms, including a USD 250 million bond and house arrest at his parents' home in Palo Alto, California. An important reason for allowing bail was that Bankman-Fried agreed to waive extradition, Roos said. Magistrate Judge Gabriel W. Gorenstein agreed to the bond and also approved the house arrest proposal. He also said Bankman-Fried would be required to get an electronic monitoring bracelet before leaving the Manhattan courthouse. Bankman-Fried wore a suit and tie in court and sat between his attorneys. Two US marshals sat behind him. Bankman-Fried, arrest