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The ongoing criminal proceedings involving FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) will transition to closing arguments on November 1.
On the 15th day of the SBF trial, the request for acquittal made by lead defense attorney Mark Cohen was rejected by presiding judge Lewis Kaplan. Consequently, the case will proceed to closing arguments from both parties at 9:30 a.m. ET (1:30 p.m. UTC) on November 1, with all evidence discovery completed. Attorneys from both sides opted not to call any additional witnesses.
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SBF has entered a plea of not guilty to all seven fraud-related charges in his criminal case, but he is anticipated to confront five additional counts in a subsequent trial set to commence in March 2024, which includes the alleged $150 million bribe to a Chinese government official.
During the discovery phase, prosecutor Danielle Sassoon introduced documents, tweets, and corporate communications indicating that the crypto executive diverted $8 billion in FTX customer deposits to support a series of high-risk trades at his hedge fund, Alameda Research. Conversely, SBF contended that such actions did not amount to fraud. In his defense, SBF asserted that utilizing customer deposits was simply a “risk management” strategy essential for Alameda’s portfolio, and that this process adhered to company policies.
Key FTX figures, including Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison, FTX CTO Gary Wang, and former FTX head of engineering Nishad Singh, have all admitted guilt to charges related to the exchange’s downfall last November and are currently assisting the U.S. government with their testimonies against SBF. If found guilty, Bankman-Fried could face a maximum sentence of 115 years in prison.
Related: Sam Bankman-Fried trial [Day 15] — latest update: Live coverage
