FTX founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, is facing multiple criminal charges and will plead not guilty as per a report.

FTX Founder to Plead Not Guilty to Charges

  • FTX founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, is facing multiple criminal charges and will plead not guilty as per a report.
  • SBF is currently free on a $250 million bail bond and is staying with his parents in Palo Alto.
  • The former CEO of FTX is set to appear in court on January 3, 2023 before U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan.

The collapse of FTX, a crypto exchange which was once valued at $32 billion and ranked in the top three biggest platforms in terms of trading volume, has attracted the eyes of many people. The founder and former CEO of the exchange, Sam Bankman-Fried, also known as SBF, is set to face criminal charges and sentenced to up to 115 years behind bars if the charges are judged to be true.

However, as per a Reuters report, SBF will plead not guilty to these criminal charges in court on January 3 and will fight his way towards justice. Interestingly, most people in the crypto space believe that the FTX founder is to be blamed for the collapse of his crypto exchange and losses in billions to its investors, who are waiting for a potential date to withdraw their funds.

SBF, who was arrested in Bahamas at the United State government’s request on charges of defrauding investors and stealing money from his exchange, is currently free on a $250 million bail bond. He was released on bail following a court hearing on December 22, 2022 and is set to appear in court on January 3, 2023 before U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan. SBF is reportedly expected to enter a not guilty plea to the criminal allegations during the hearing. 

It is important to note that on December 13, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused the former CEO of FTX of breaking the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934’s anti-fraud provisions. 

“We allege that Sam Bankman-Fried built a house of cards on a foundation of deception while telling investors that it was one of the safest buildings in crypto,” SEC Chairman Gary Gensler wrote in a statement.

If he is found guilty, he would likely be barred from crypto businesses or from serving as an officer of a publicly traded company and also banned from trading securities aside from personal use.

It is crucial to note that while the entire world and regulators believe that the collapse of FTX was the responsibility of SBF, multi-millionaire investor and former critic of Bitcoin (BTC) turned supporter, Kevin O’Leary, stated that leading crypto exchange Binance is responsible for the same

“In my view, my personal opinion, these two […] in an unregulated market […] with this incredible business in terms of growth were at war with each other, and one put the other out of business, intentionally. Now, maybe there is nothing wrong with that, maybe there is nothing wrong with love and war, but Binance is a massive unregulated global monopoly now, and they put FTX out of business,” said O’Leary.

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Parth Dubey Verified

A crypto journalist with over 3 years of experience in DeFi, NFT, metaverse, etc. Parth has worked with major media outlets in the crypto and finance world and has gained experience and expertise in crypto culture after surviving bear and bull markets over the years.

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