NewsletterBreaking: FTX Founder SBF Charged For Bribing $40 Million To Chinese Officials; Here’s Why
On Tuesday, U.S. prosecutors released a new indictment against Sam Bankman-Fried, who is the founder of the now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange. The charges against him include conspiring to violate anti-bribery provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The law explicitly prohibits American businesses and individuals from offering or giving bribes to foreign officials to obtain or retain business.
SBF Charged In Bribery Conspiracy
Bankman-Fried has been accused by federal prosecutors in Manhattan of directing the transfer of cryptocurrency roughly worth $40 million to Chinese government officials for their personal benefit. The United States government alleges that the 31-year-old crypto mogul orchestrated the transaction with the purpose of unfreezing Alameda Research’s trading accounts, which held over $1 billion worth of cryptocurrency — that had been frozen by Chinese authorities.
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The recently filed indictment further states that the accounts were unfrozen after the payment was transacted around November 2021, from Alameda’s primary trading account to a private crypto wallet. Following the release of the frozen accounts, Bankman-Fried green-signaled further payments in cryptocurrency to complete the bribe, according to the prosecutors.
Growing Troubles For SBF
In a legal proceeding, prosecutors requested that U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan schedule a court hearing for Bankman-Fried to be arraigned on a new 13-count indictment. In the previous month, prosecutors introduced four additional charges against SBF, alleging that he masterminded an illegal scheme to make campaign donations to gain influence in Washington, D.C.
Bankman-Fried has previously pleaded not guilty to eight counts related to the bankruptcy of FTX and is currently out on bail. The charges accuse him of stealing billions of dollars in customer funds to cover losses at his crypto-focused hedge fund, Alameda Research.
Also Read: U.S. CFTC Discards SEC’s “Security” Stance, Classifies Bitcoin & Ethereum As Commodities
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