Sam Bankman-Fried Says He did not Steal Users’ Funds

Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the former CEO of the now-bankrupt FTX has maintained that he did not steal users’ funds as he makes his first statement since his arrest following the demise of his exchange.

According to the blog post titled “FTX Pre-Mortem Overview”  SBF blamed the exchange’s collapse on the broader market conditions and the inadequate hedging of its sister trading firm Alameda Research.

Although Bankman-Fried claimed not to have been in charge of Alameda for a few years, he admitted that the trading firm is not properly hedged against market exposure and this consequently led to a contagion effect that saw the firm once valued at $32 billion go bankrupt. Additionally, the founder of the bankrupt exchange claims targeted attacks by Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, contributed to Alameda’s insolvency.

In the same breath, the embattled CEO also said there were plans to make certain subsidiaries of the cryptocurrency exchange whole after it filed for bankruptcy protection. He maintained that FTX US is fully solvent and should be able to make customers whole again. 

Also FTX International, another subsidiary of the bankrupt exchange, holds about $8 billion in varying assets even though it processed $5 billion of withdrawals in its last days of operation. In addition, the former billionaire is also willing to commit all his personal assets to make users whole.

SBF’s Trial Continues

The 30-year-old field entrepreneur was arrested on charges of securities fraud and wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to dodge campaign funding restrictions. He was later released on a $250 million bail bond after his extradition to the United States. 

His trial, which will probably last for four weeks, will commence on October 2, 2023. Recall that Judge Ronnie Abrams of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York has excused herself from the FTX/SBF legal proceedings due to a conflict of interest.

Earlier in the month, SBF pleaded not guilty to charges against him in the federal court of New York. However, former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison and the exchange’s co-founder Gary Wang have entered guilty pleas to charges related to FTX’s demise and are cooperating with prosecutors.