Collapsed crypto exchange founder in court Thursday

investmentnews.com:

Sam Bankman-Fried’s testimony in a New York courtroom Thursday will be the latest must-see moment in the high-profile fraud trial over the collapse of his FTX crypto exchange.

The 31-year-old Bankman-Fried’s decision to take the stand was questioned by defense lawyers, but may be his only chance to win over jurors after weeks of damaging testimony from his former friends and colleagues.

The once respected crypto mogul is facing decades in prison on charges that he directed the transfer of FTX customer money into Alameda Research, an affiliated hedge fund, for risky investments, political donations and expensive real estate before both companies spiraled into bankruptcy last year. 

“He couldn’t stop talking to press and wider world after FTX collapsed and before he was arrested and then while out on bail so no one should be surprised that he is choosing to take the stand,” said Brian Klein, a former federal prosecutor. 

The highlight of the trial so far has been the testimony of Caroline Ellison, Bankman-Fried’s former girlfriend who he installed as CEO of Alameda. The 28-year-old Ellison told jurors that Bankman-Fried orchestrated a fraud at FTX, which included directing her to create a set of alternative balance sheets to obscure billions of dollars borrowed from the exchange’s customers.

Ellison commanded the attention of jurors and spectators when she talked about the end of Bankman-Fried’s empire, testifying through tears: “That was overall the worst week of my life.”

Caroline Ellison, former chief executive officer of Alameda Research LLC, center, exits court in New York, US, on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023. Ellison, ex-girlfriend of FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried, outlined for a New York jury Wednesday how she worked