Bahamas Financial News

Splashy advertising featuring football star Tom Brady and comedian Larry David was shown to jurors as prosecutors launched a historic fraud case against cryptocurrency maven Sam Bankman-Fried

By Jody Godoy and Luc Cohen

A prosecutor accused FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried of stealing at least $10 billion from his customers as opening statements began in a federal court trial in New York City

Cointelegraph reporters are on the ground in New York for the trial of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. As the saga unfolds, check below for the latest updates.

By Hannah Lang

Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX, is set to face trial in federal court in Manhattan, starting with jury selection today. The 31-year-old is accused of being the architect behind one of the largest financial crimes in U.S. history, following the bankruptcy of his crypto platform FTX. 

Sam Bankman-Fried is set to go on trial on Tuesday on fraud and conspiracy charges related to the collapse of FTX, the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange he founded and led.

Over the past 12 months, some investors learned the hard way why they needed to move their crypto offline. Those who kept Bitcoin (BTC) and altcoins on crypto exchanges like FTX lost control of their assets, sometimes forever. Events drew a red line under the storied crypto adage: “Not your keys, not your coins.” 

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried explored the possibility of offering Donald Trump a staggering $5 billion to dissuade him from running for the United States presidency in 2024, Big Short author Michael Lewis revealed. 

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried once looked into paying Donald Trump not to run for United States president, according to Michael Lewis, the author of a new book documenting the rise and fall of SBF.

According to a Wednesday report by digital assets platform Matrixport, the market value of bankruptcy claims against crypto exchange FTX has more than tripled this year. This comes ahead of the founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried's impending criminal trial set to begin next week.

Prosecutors from the United States Department of Justice will be allowed to surface the details of Sam Bankman-Fried’s political donations as the evidence is directly relevant to his fraud charges, ruled U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan.

Project mBridge may soon see significant expansion, according to Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) CEO Eddie Yue. He outlined the plans for the central bank digital currency (CBDC) project in a speech in Shanghai.

Joseph Bankman, the father of the embattled former crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried, has reportedly been implicated in holding an advisory position within a prominent Democratic dark money network. Watchdogs suggest that this arrangement warrants a thorough investigation.

A federal appeals court in Manhattan seems unreceptive to arguments that FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried should be released before his trial starts in two weeks

Joseph Bankman, the father of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), complained to his son about the salary he was receiving during his employment at FTX US, turning the issue into a family matter.

FTX on Monday sued the parents of founder Sam Bankman-Fried, saying that Stanford professors Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried used the company to enrich themselves at the expense of FTX's customers. FTX, now being led by turnaround specialist John Ray, said that company founder Sam Bankman-Fried ran FTX as a «family business» and misappropriated billions in customer funds for the benefit of a small circle of insiders, including his parents. Sam Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to charges that he defrauded FTX customers by using their funds to prop up his own risky investments. He is currently jailed ahead of a trial scheduled to begin October 3. Other former FTX executives have pleaded guilty to criminal charges.

crypto exchange FTX can sell and invest its crypto holdings worth over $3.4 billion to pay back creditors, a US judge has ruled. Judge John Dorsey in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware approved the motion and overruled objections opposing the plan, reports Coindesk. FTX holds $1.16 billion of solana crypto tokens — approximately 16 per cent of the token's outstanding supply — and about $560 million in Bitcoin. The rest of its holdings consist of lesser known illiquid tokens.

The operator of a luxury cruise ship that ran aground in Greenland with 206 people on board said Thursday that the MV Ocean Explorer was “successfully” pulled free by a fisheries research vessel at high tide

The latest track from the Canadian Hurricane Centre suggests Hurricane Lee could strike Nova Scotia early Sunday morning.

Now-defunct crypto exchange FTX  holds approximately $7 billion in assets, including $1.16 billion worth of Solana (SOL) tokens and $560 million in Bitcoin (BTC).