An indictment filed by the United States against former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) revealed that he has been charged with eight counts of wire fraud, money laundering, securities fraud, among other things, as per the document reviewed by Medianama. The charges were brought because the U.S. Attorney’s office alleged that SBF misappropriated billions of dollars of customer funds deposited with FTX, and misled investors and lenders to FTX and Alameda Research, as per a press release shared by the U.S. Attorney’s office. “As today’s charges make clear, this was not a case of mismanagement or poor oversight, but of intentional fraud, plain and simple,” read a statement from the U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. Why it matters: The indictment is notable as it can set a precedent for bringing accountability in the unregulated crypto sector. The extent of damage that investors faced following FTX’s collapse runs into billions. The allegations in the indictment cast a grim shadow on SBF, who has consistently maintained that the collapse was a result of his mistakes and not wilful wrongdoing. What does the indictment say? The indictment contains eight counts in total and SBF is staring at a prison term of more than 100 years if proven guilty on each of these counts, according to the press release. Here is a summary of the indictment: Wire fraud on customers (Counts 1 & 2): The indictment alleged that SBF and others conspired together to commit wire fraud wilfully from 2019 till November 2022, in the U.S.,…
