Disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been found guilty of all seven criminal counts in his federal fraud and conspiracy trial.
The charges
- Count one: Wire fraud on customers of FTX
- Count two: Conspiracy to commit wire fraud on customers of FTX
- Count three: Wire fraud on Alameda Research lenders
- Count four: Conspiracy to commit wire fraud on lenders to Alameda Research
- Count five: Conspiracy to commit securities fraud on investors in FTX
- Count six: Conspiracy to commit commodities fraud on customers of FTX
- Count seven: Conspiracy to commit money laundering
The New York jury deliberated for a little over four hours before reaching the unanimous verdict, finding Bankman-Fried guilty of offences that include conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.
This decisive ruling arrives on the heels of the one-year anniversary of FTX’s collapse into insolvency, a downfall triggered by a failure to fulfil customer withdrawal demands.
Bankman-Fried’s defence attorney, Mark Cohen, said Wednesday the prosecution was trying to paint his client as a movie villain and argued that Bankman-Fried’s business collapsed through no fault of his own.
“We respect the jury’s decision. But we are very disappointed with the result,” Cohen said in a statement. “Mr. Bankman Fried maintains his innocence and will continue to vigorously fight the charges against him.”
Background
Bankman-Fried, who pleaded not guilty to all of his charges, was first charged in late 2022 with money laundering and multiple fraud counts. The charges revolved around allegations that Bankman-Fried was putting customers’ money into FTX’s sister trading firm, Alameda Research.
The disgraced cryptocurrency executive resigned from FTX about a month before he was hit with the charges. At the same time, FTX filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy while attempting to pay back investors, customers and creditors—a decision the exchange took after experiencing a liquidity crisis caused by a selloff of its own tokens.
