Sam Bankman-Fried Arrested In The Bahamas As Criminal Charges Loom – The Bahamas police have arrested former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, according to a statement released by the country’s attorney general on Monday. The US has formally notified the Bahamas of criminal charges against him. Bankman-Fried is expected to be extradited to the United States, according to the Bahamas attorney general’s office, which declined to comment on the charges.
Damian Williams, the United States attorney for the southern district of New York, confirmed Bankman-Fried arrest and announced that the related indictment would be unsealed on Tuesday in a tweet. “We will have more to say at that time,” he said. The former CEO had been expected on Tuesday to make his first public appearance since FTX’s collapse before US lawmakers. Bankman-Fried, who has been vocal throughout the collapse of FTX on his Twitter account and in public media appearances, was tweeting just hours before his arrest.
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Earlier in the day, he announced that he would be “calling in” from the Bahamas to the House Financial Services Committee hearing. In a Twitter Spaces event on Monday with Twitter account Unusual Whales, Bankman-Fried said it was difficult for him “to move right now and travel because the paparazzi effect is quite large.” In a statement, Congresswoman Maxine Waters who chairs the committee said she was disappointed Bankman-Fried would not be appearing at the hearing.
Earlier in the day, he announced that he would be “calling in” from the Bahamas to the House Financial Services Committee hearing. In a Twitter Spaces event on Monday with Twitter account Unusual Whales, Bankman-Fried said it was difficult for him “to move right now and travel because the paparazzi effect is quite large.” In a statement, Congresswoman Maxine Waters who chairs the committee said she was disappointed Bankman-Fried would not be appearing at the hearing.
“Although Mr Bankman-Fried must be held accountable, the American public deserves to hear directly from Mr Bankman-Fried about the actions that’ve harmed over one million people, and wiped out the hard-earned life savings of so many,” she said. “The public has been waiting eagerly to get these answers under oath before Congress, and the timing of this arrest denies the public this opportunity.” Waters said the committee would still hear from John Ray III, FTX’s new chief executive.
Ray, a veteran bankruptcy specialist who previously oversaw the aftermath of the collapse of energy giant Enron, has described FTX as an “unprecedented and complete failure of corporate controls” the likes of which he has not witnessed in his 40-year career. In prepared testimony seen by Reuters, Bankman-Fried said he was pressured into nominating Ray as chief executive in early November by lawyers who were advising his firm at the time. He said shortly thereafter he received a “potential funding offer for billions of dollars to help make customers whole,” but that it was too late to rescind the move.
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Last month, FTX filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States, and CEO Bankman-Fried resigned, sparking a surge of public demands for stronger regulation of the cryptocurrency industry. The troubled cryptocurrency trading website fought to acquire funds to stave off collapse as traders hurried to remove $6 billion from the platform within 72 hours and rival exchange Binance abandoned a potential rescue deal. Two sources familiar with the queries told Reuters that US officials have sought information from investors and potential investors in FTX in recent weeks. Additionally, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission launched investigations.
