Image: (APA/AFP/ED JONES)
Jurors in New York found him guilty on seven counts, as US media reported from the courtroom on Thursday (local time). The sentence will be decided later. Bankman-Fried faces decades in prison – in the worst case scenario, it could be more than 100 years in prison.
The jury only needed around five hours to make their decision after the prosecution and defense had finished their closing arguments. The former star entrepreneur himself testified in the trial, but according to observers, he did not cut a convincing figure.
- Celebrated, fallen deeply: You can read a portrait of Sam Bankman-Fried here
Bankman-Fried became known worldwide as the founder of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, which collapsed spectacularly a year ago. The US judiciary accuses the 31-year-old of diverting $14 billion (around €13.1 billion) from the assets of FTX customers without their knowledge, among other things, for risky transactions by his hedge fund Alameda Research finance. When these deals went wrong, FTX was also caught in the vortex. According to the indictment, Bankman-Fried is said to have ensured that Alameda was able to borrow money from FTX without providing the usual collateral. He himself shrugged off responsibility in court and referred to the decisions of others.
Bankman-Fried had been heavily burdened in the process by former close colleagues such as Alameda boss Caroline Ellison. He himself said in court that he only partially understood the financial situation of his companies. He was “very surprised” by the extent of the problems when he learned in October 2022 that Alameda Research had around $8 billion in debt to FTX.
Before the collapse, FTX was one of the largest trading venues for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. In December, Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas. FTX had its headquarters there.
more from economics
