Judge Rejects Sam Bankman-Fried’s Bid to Dismiss Criminal Charges Over FTX, Confirms Trial

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s bid to dismiss most of the criminal charges filed against him by the U.S. government has been rejected by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan. The charges allege his involvement in a multibillion-dollar fraud.

Judge Kaplan’s decision has now paved the way for an October 2 trial against Bankman-Fried, who was once a billionaire.

Prosecutors accuse Bankman-Fried of diverting billions of dollars from FTX customer funds to cover losses at his hedge fund Alameda Research. Additionally, they allege that he misled investors and lenders and made illegal contributions to U.S. political campaigns using his colleagues’ names.

Bankman-Fried continues to assert his innocence, pleading not guilty and denying any theft of funds. However, he does admit to FTX’s lack of adequate risk management.

In May, Bankman-Fried sought to have at least 11 of the 13 fraud and conspiracy charges against him dismissed. His argument hinged on a fraud theory that the U.S. Supreme Court had deemed invalid the previous month. However, Judge Kaplan sided with the prosecutors, stating that this theory, known as the right to control, did not apply to Bankman-Fried.

Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire collapsed in November 2022, after crypto publication CoinDesk published a story on Alameda’s balance sheet. A leaked document revealed that Alameda’s solvency was dependent on a multi-billion-dollar valuation that Alameda assigned to its holdings of FTT, FTX’s proprietary digital currency, which was illiquid and difficult to value.

This revelation sparked a rush among FTX customers to withdraw their funds from the FTX exchange. After several unsuccessful attempts to reassure the public and secure enough liquid capital to meet customer withdrawals, Bankman-Fried stepped down from FTX on November 11, 2022. Shortly after, FTX and Alameda filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.