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NEW YORKKOMPAS.com – Former FTX chief Sam Bankman-Fried will face house arrest awaiting trial in the United States on charges of defrauding clients and investors of the exchange cryptocurrency (cryptocurrency) which collapsed.
A US judge said the 30-year-old former billionaire could be released by his parents on $250 million bail.
At trial, Bankman-Fried neither admitted nor denied guilt for the crimes he was accused of.
Read also: Bahamian judge refuses free bail from FTX crypto boss Sam Bankman-Fried
He has previously distanced himself from the allegations, which have rocked the entire cryptocurrency industry around the world.
“I didn’t defraud on purpose. I don’t think I committed fraud. I didn’t want any of this to happen. I’m definitely as incompetent as I thought I was,” he said BBCshortly before his December 12 arrest in the Bahamas, where he lives and is the headquarters of FTX.
Two of Bankman-Fried’s closest associates pleaded guilty to fraud on Wednesday (12/22/2022) and cooperated with the investigation.
Federal prosecutors in New York have accused Bankman-Fried of illegally using customer deposits made at FTX to fund another cryptocurrency firm, Alameda Research, by buying property and using millions of dollars for political donations.
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In a news conference last week, they described it as “one of the largest financial scams in US history” on eight felony charges, including wire fraud, money laundering and campaign finance violations.
US financial regulators have also filed civil lawsuits.
Bankman-Fried spent nine days in jail in the Bahamas weighing his options before telling a Nassau court on Wednesday (12/21/2022) that he would not fight extradition, which would have sparked a lengthy legal battle.
In a court hearing on Thursday (12/22/2022) in New York, Assistant US Attorney Nick Roos said prosecutors will not challenge Bankman-Fried’s bail release, despite “fraud of proportions epics” that involved him.
The waiver was given considering Bankman-Fried’s decision to voluntarily return to the United States and his now lost financial condition.
Bankman-Fried’s release required him to surrender his passport and be subject to location monitoring and detention at his parents’ home in California.
Read also: FTX Crypto Scandal, Scammer CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Arrested in the Bahamas
He also agreed to undergo regular mental treatment. Her parents will jointly sign the $250 million bond, Bankman-Fried attorney Mark Cohen said.
The son of two Stanford University professors, Bankman-Fried founded FTX in 2019.
Known to his many fans as SBF, the curly-haired MIT grad was once hailed as a hero in the cryptocurrency world and was nicknamed “King of cryptocurrencies.”
He is known for rescuing struggling businesses and making large donations to charity.
The collapse of his company, which was once valued at over $30 billion, has rocked the cryptocurrency industry at large. This triggers bankruptcy filings at other companies and a further decline in the value of the cryptocurrency.
His firm filed for bankruptcy in November after customers and investors scrambled to withdraw their funds from the company amid reports that its finances were faltering.
Read also: The End of Cryptocurrency King Sam Bankman-Fried, Founder of FTX Who Lost IDR 500 Trillion in Days
Bankman-Fried, who stepped down as CEO the same day, has previously denied any wrongdoing.
He admitted that previously he would have focused on returning funds to clients.
At the arraignment on Thursday, Bankman-Fried spoke only once, when asked if he understood the terms of his release and that he could be charged with further offenses if he failed to appear in court.
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