U.S. Prosecutors Drop Additional Charges Against Ex-FTX Chief
Prosecution Strategy Shifts in High-Profile Case
In a notable development on December 29, U.S. prosecutors announced their decision not to pursue a second trial for extra charges against Sam Bankman-Fried, the former founder of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. This move followed Bankman-Fried's conviction on November 3 on seven fraud charges.
The additional charges, initially slated for a separate trial, included unlawful political campaign contributions and other serious accusations. A superseding indictment in March 2023 further compounded these charges, adding allegations of conspiracy to bribe foreign officials, bank fraud, operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, and securities and commodities fraud.
Bankman-Fried's political contributions have been a point of interest, with reports indicating donations totaling $119 million, marking him as the fourth largest donor in the 2022 U.S. midterm elections.
The prosecution's shift in strategy was influenced by several factors. One crucial aspect was the limitation imposed by The Bahamas, where Bankman-Fried was extradited from. The Bahamas specified that charges not included in the extradition treaty could not be pursued, leading U.S. prosecutors to focus on the seven charges agreed upon.
This decision was further reinforced by the nature of the evidence. Prosecutors highlighted that the evidence presented in the initial trial, which covered Bankman-Fried's unlawful political donations, would largely overlap with what would be presented in a second trial.
Moreover, the prosecutors emphasized the importance of a prompt case resolution. They argued that proceeding directly to sentencing, scheduled for March 2024, would better serve the public interest. This approach would avoid unnecessary delays and potentially aid in delivering justice to the victims through orders of forfeiture and restitution.
However, the impact of dropping the unlawful donations charge on FTX's efforts to recover contributions remains unclear.
More news about ftx.us
- Sep 04, 2023 6:10 pmU.S. Department of Justice: FTX did not clearly distinguish its international platform from FTX.US in its advertisementsOdaily Planet Daily News The U.S. Department of Justice said in a document filed on Friday night that the FTX ad featuring comedian Larry David and American football player Tom Brady shows that the boundaries between FTX's U.S. and international operations are increasingly blurred. more blurred. Lawyers for SBF said that because its allegations relate to international operations, the U.S. operations should be legally separated. The U.S. government said the distinction was less clear-cut, citing a series of now-infamous ads that aired months before the crypto market crash and ultimately the collapse of the SBF empire. The U.S. Department of Justice document cites an FTX Super Bowl ad and states, “The ad featured celebrities describing ‘FTX’ as ‘a safe and easy way to get exposure to cryptocurrencies’ and showing customers using the FTX Logo.” Instead of FTX.US Logo equipment." Internal documents show that there is no difference between FTX's advertisements for international platforms and FTX.US. The DOJ also wants to investigate details of FTX's collapse, arguing that they were "inextricably linked" to its alleged misappropriation of client funds. (CoinDesk)
- Aug 07, 2023 8:40 pmFormer FTX.US Head of Partnerships Sina Nader as Head of Strategy at Mysten LabsOdaily Planet Daily News Sina Nader, the former head of FTX.US partnerships, joined Mysten Labs as the head of strategy and will report directly to CEO Evan Cheng. Sina Nader previously helped FTX.US reach partnerships with many celebrities and sports projects, and also served as the head of Robinhood cryptocurrency. (Bloomberg)
- Jun 28, 2023 2:35 pmThe audit firm for TrueUSD Proof of Reserves is the same team as the FTX.US audit firmAccording to CoinDesk, the proof of reserve of the USD stablecoin TrueUSD was audited by The Network Firm, formerly known as Armanino, which worked with Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) to audit FTX.US. Armanino’s digital asset team rebranded itself The Network Firm to continue auditing and certification after FTX’s bankruptcy, according to CoinDesk. Previously, Armanino's 2021 audit did not provide an opinion on FTX.US or FTX Trading's internal controls over accounting and financial reporting.
- Apr 19, 2023 10:56 pmArchitect, Founded by Former FTX.US President, Launches Trading PlatformAccording to Bloomberg, Architect, a cryptocurrency software company founded by former FTX.US president Brett Harrison, has launched a trading platform that aims to leverage trading platforms including CME Group, Coinbase Global and Uniswap. Architect also plans to provide clearing services for futures trades through StoneX Group Inc. and Wedbush Financial Services LLC. Architect does not manage or trade client funds, but instead provides users with software that connects to futures and crypto market systems. Future plans for Architect are to offer trading across multiple asset classes and expand into equities, options and fixed income products.
- Jan 20, 2023 9:25 pmArchitect, founded by former FTX.US president, completes $5 million in financingAccording to Bloomberg, Architect, founded by former FTX.US president Brett Harrison, completed a $5 million financing. Participating investors include Coinbase Ventures, Circle Ventures, SV Angel, Third King Venture Capital, and Motivate Venture Capital. Individual investors include the founder of SkyBridge Capital. Anthony Scaramucci. Architect aims to provide software trading tools in the DeFi space to large investors and institutions. the
- Jan 09, 2023 2:46 pmFormer FTX.US President: Will share information about FTX operations in a timely mannerFormer FTX.US President Brett Harrison tweeted that he would share information about FTX operations in a timely manner. Zach Dexter, CEO of FTX's US derivatives division, succeeded Brett Harrison as president of FTX.US last September.
- Dec 16, 2022 6:36 pmSources: FTX.US auditor Armanino abandons cryptocurrency industry audit businessAccording to Forbes magazine, citing sources, FTX.US’s auditor, Armanino, has given up the cryptocurrency industry audit business because other industry clients believe that Armanino’s reputation risk will make its audit results questionable and put pressure on Armanino. Armanino started supporting the cryptocurrency industry in 2014, providing services including proof of reserve audits and proof of stablecoins.
- Dec 03, 2022 10:14 amSources: Former FTX.US President Is Funding His New StartupFormer FTX.US president Brett Harrison is raising money for his new startup, which aims to serve professional investors trading on centralized and decentralized exchanges, The Information reported citing sources. Brett Harrison has told at least one investor that he wants to raise $6 million at a $60 million valuation.
- Nov 14, 2022 11:01 pmThe Block: Multicoin Capital's VC Fund Invests $25 Million in FTX.USAccording to The Block, Multicoin Capital’s third venture capital fund invested $25 million in FTX.US, accounting for 5.8% of the fund’s total fundraising. Additionally, the VC fund also holds approximately $2 million in FTX International.
- Aug 20, 2022 10:14 amFDIC: FTX.US and Five Crypto Firms Falsely Represent Deposit InsuranceThe Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) sent letters to FTX.US, Cryptonews.com, FDICCrypto.com, SmartAsset.com, and Cryptosec.info to correct their misrepresentations about the FDIC. The above-mentioned companies all state or imply on their websites and social media accounts that certain crypto-related products are FDIC-insured, or that stocks held in brokerage accounts are FDIC-insured, the FDIC said. Cryptocurrency companies are not covered by the FDIC, the FDIC said late last month. According to the FDIC, FTX.US President Brett Harrison once stated in a tweet that FTX.US’s stock trading funds were deposited in an FDIC insured account, and the tweet has now been deleted. Brett Harrison said the tweet was made in response to a statement on whether deposits were held at Evolve, an FDIC-insured bank, and was not intended to be misleading.
More news about ftx.us
