SEC Chair Faces Ethics Probe Over Ties With SBF – Report

The Chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Gary Gensler is under probe by the regulator’s ethics committee over his alleged ties to Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the founder of the bankrupt crypto trading platform, FTX Derivatives Exchange.

The Suspicion on SEC Chair

According to a New York Post report, Gensler’s previous 45-minutes Zoom call with SBF held in March 2022 has raised many eyebrows. As discovered by the publication through documents obtained in line with the Freedom of Information Act, the SEC boss did not request permission from the office of the Ethics Counsel to attend the meeting.

The crypto ecosystem has constantly flagged the relationship between Gensler and Bankman-Fried when many industry leaders have decried lack of accessibility to the top market regulator. Per the investigation of the NY Post, the lack of request for permission to meet SBF is a breach of protocol.

It becomes even more of a concern as it is assumed that Gensler is aware that if he had filed the request, it might have been turned down. While an SEC Spokesperson said the meeting was pre-approved by the ethics committee, no documentation was produced to substantiate the claims.

“The fact that the SEC appears unwilling to share all the documentation associated with the vetting of this meeting should raise enormous red flags for investigators,” Thomas Jones, president of the American Accountability Foundation said noting that “These types of special-access meetings are where some of the worst abuses in Washington happen and the American people need to know what happened in the lead up to this meeting.”

While multiple conflict of interest and associations remain flagged and under probe, it remains unclear how the Ethics Committee probe into the SEC Chair will shape up.

FTX Creditors Still in Loss

While the media and regulators are digging into key aspects of FTX’s operations at the time of Bankman-Fried was in charge, one fact remains clear, users and creditors of the trading platform remain the biggest losers till date.

While there is a glimmer of hope that some locked funds can be recouped, the lawyers of the trading platforms remains the biggest beneficiaries at this time with millions of dollars expended in legal fees to date according to reports