Federal prosecutors have quietly amended the charges against Sam Bankman-Fried, the prominent cryptocurrency entrepreneur and Democratic megadonor, following his arrest in connection with the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange, FTX.
Bankman-Fried, widely known as SBF, was initially charged with eight federal counts, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and campaign finance violations, after FTX experienced a significant failure. The collapse resulted in the disappearance of over $8 billion in customer deposits.
Authorities have alleged that Bankman-Fried misappropriated billions of dollars from customers, diverting the funds for personal use, including luxury real estate purchases and political contributions. The alleged scheme unraveled when the cryptocurrency market crashed, leading to the exposure of the illicit activities.
During a hearing in January, an attorney for FTX revealed that SBF had employed a covert method to launder money to Alameda Research, a sister company of FTX. Caroline Ellison, SBF’s former girlfriend and CEO of Alameda Research, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors, acknowledging their joint efforts to deceive FTX customers and investors.
NEWS in the Sam Bankman-Fried case:
Prosecutors at the Southern District of New York agree to sever five charges from its planned October trial of SBF.
The government asks for those charges to be tried separately in the first quarter of 2024. pic.twitter.com/Yaioa10L72— Teddy Schleifer (@teddyschleifer) June 15, 2023
Recently, federal prosecutors in New York filed a motion to withdraw five charges against Bankman-Fried, with the condition that these charges could be brought forward at a later date if approved by the judge.
The additional charges were added subsequent to Bankman-Fried’s extradition from the Bahamas, where his cryptocurrency exchange had been headquartered.
The dropped charges include allegations of fraud tied to a fabricated company, which SBF purportedly established to circumvent restrictions on a California bank account. Additionally, a bribery conspiracy charge claimed that Bankman-Fried spent $40 million in an attempt to influence a Chinese government official.
Throughout the 2022 midterm elections, Bankman-Fried made substantial donations, primarily to Democratic candidates.
As the second-largest contributor to the Democratic Party during that election cycle, Bankman-Fried’s Protect Our Future PAC provided tens of millions of dollars in support to 25 Democratic candidates in congressional races, contributing to victories in 18 of those races. Some of these wins included newly elected Democrats, including several who secured seats that were previously held by Republicans.
Bankman-Fried donated $27 million to the PAC and reportedly made additional undisclosed donations through dark money channels, as reported by Open Secrets.
In 2020, Bankman-Fried also made a significant contribution of $5 million to President Biden’s campaign.
