Key Takeaways:

The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) will begin this week.

Caroline Ellison, his former girlfriend & head of Alameda Research, will testify against him.

SBF allegedly tried to pay Donald Trump to stop him from running for reelection.
The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of the now-defunct crypto exchange FTX, will begin this week.

YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — The cryptocurrency industry is abuzz with anticipation as the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the renowned founder of crypto exchange FTX, is slated to commence on October 3, 2023. This high-profile trial has garnered significant attention. 

The testimony of Caroline Ellison, the former head of trading firm Alameda Research and Bankman-Fried’s alleged former girlfriend, has become the highlight of the upcoming trial. 

Sam Bankman-Fried’s romantic life comes to bite him

In November 2022, FTX, once seen as a challenger to Binance, crashed. The company faced serious liquidity issues owing to gross mismanagement of funds. 

Further investigations revealed that Alameda Research had engaged in high-risk investments using customer funds from its affiliated cryptocurrency exchange, FTX. The trading firm was a segment of SBF’s empire. 

However, the funds, over $8 billion, never came back to the exchange. Instead, Alameda used them to service its debts to its creditors.

Meanwhile, Caroline Ellison has maintained that she took the funds on Bankman-Fried’s directive. She has cut a deal with the prosecutors and is determined to testify against his former boss and boyfriend.

But, although she could do most damage, she is not the only one. FTX co-founder Gary Wang and engineering director Nishad Singh will also point fingers at SBF. 

Ellison has pleaded guilty to seven criminal counts. She faces up to 110 years in jail. However, his lawyers are hoping to get a much lighter sentencing. As often happens, she has allegedly offered her testimony in exchange for a deal. 

Meanwhile, Bankman-Fried has pled not guilty to the charges. Notwithstanding, in August 2023, a federal judge revoked his bail and sentenced him to jail awaiting trial. 

His legal team will now argue that there is insufficient proof that he directed Elison to commit those crimes. 

Once she steps into that witness box, things will turn messy. Many slots could fall out of the closet she is about to open. 

SBF wanted to pay Donald Trump to keep him out of the White House

In what comes as a new shocking revelation, Sam Bankman-Fried allegedly contemplated offering former US President Donald Trump a substantial sum to abstain from running for reelection in 2020.

The details of his alleged plan are in an upcoming book titled “Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon,” authored by Michael Lewis.

In an interview with 60 Minutes, Lewis narrated the entire episode. According to him, he had received a quote of $5 billion. It is yet unsure who gave him that price. However, that was the amount Trump allegedly wanted to drop out. 

According to his biographer Michael Lewis, Sam Bankman-Friend wanted to pay Donald Trump to drop out of the Presidential race. Video Credit: 60 Minutes

Moreover, SBF met with Republican Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell over dinner. He wanted to contribute “tens of millions” dollars to push anti-Trump candidates. 

The disgraced SBF chief believed Donald Trump was “a threat to democracy.” Therefore, he was willing to shell out cash to stop him.

“He took to the view, that all the big existential problems are going to require the United States Government to be involved to solve them. And if democracy is undermined… all these problems are less likely to be solved. He saw Trump trying to undermine democracy and he thought Trump belongs on the list of existential risks”

 SBF’s biographer said. 

However, as Lewis explains, FTX crashed, and he lost his wealth before he could do it. Nonetheless, SBF was very generous in its political donations. He contributed to the election campaigns of both Republicans and Democrats.

The post Sam Bankman-Fried Trial Begins: Latest Updates Here appeared first on CoinChapter.

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Filed under: Bitcoin - @ October 2, 2023 5:09 pm