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Cryptocurrency: FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried charged with eight criminal offenses, denied bail

Photo by: Mariia Shalabaieva/Unsplash

FTX Trading Ltd. has gone bankrupt, and its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, is currently on trial. He was arrested earlier this week and indicted for eight crimes including conspiracy and fraud which Bankman-Fried said he did not intend to do during a recent interview.

The 30-year-old, who was previously labelled the “crypto king” has been arrested on Monday in his home in the Bahamas. The next day, he appeared in a Nassau court to answer the crimes levelled against him.

Based on an indictment from the US Attorney of the Southern District of New York, the FTX founder was indicted for various criminal charges and most of them are related to the misuse of the crypto firm’s customers’ funds.

If he is convicted of all eight crimes, Bankman-Fried is facing up to 115 years of imprisonment time. This penalty is based on the congressional statutory maximum sentencing guidelines, as per CNN Business.

The embattled former billionaire did not waive his right to an extradition hearing. Joyann Ferguson-Pratt, the Chief Magistrate of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, also denied him bail, stating that he is a flight risk.

Moreover, the regulators in US markets said Bankman-Fried defrauded investors and FTX customers. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) further described his misdeed as an “orchestrated a years-long fraud” to hide the diversion of customer funds to Alameda Research which he also owns, from investors.

Gary Gensler, the SEC chairman said, “We allege that Sam Bankman-Fried built a house of cards on a foundation of deception while telling investors that it was one of the safest buildings in crypto.”

In response to the results of the first trial after Bankman-Fried’s arrest, his lawyer, Mark S. Cohen, said that they are reviewing the charges. He added that, along with his legal team, they are considering all of Sam’s legal options to get out of or reduce the charges.

Photo by: Mariia Shalabaieva/Unsplash

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