A New York federal judge agreed on Thursday to release the founder and former boss of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange platform, the American Sam Bankman-Fried, on payment of a monster bail of 250 million dollars. .
Indicted in particular for fraud and criminal association, "SBF", his nickname, had been extradited from the Bahamas on Wednesday evening after having given up contesting his surrender to the American authorities.
A Manhattan federal prosecutor announced on Wednesday that he would appear before a federal judge in New York on Thursday and that his presentation could take place at any time.
The latter therefore took the decision to release him on bail at the end of the hearing.
Earlier Wednesday, Sam Bankman-Fried agreed to be extradited to the United States during a hearing in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas.
At the hearing before a Bahamian magistrate, he expressed his "desire to ensure that the customers concerned get their money back", according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Manhattan federal prosecutor also revealed on Wednesday that two key figures in the case had been charged.
The latter have pleaded guilty and are collaborating with the government, which means that they could incriminate the man with abundant black hair.
They are Caroline Ellison, former boss of the company Alameda Research, and Gary Wang, co-founder of FTX, charged “in connection with their role in the fraud which contributed to the collapse of FTX”, declared Damian Williams, without giving more details.
According to the Wall Street Journal, both were charged with fraud, while only Caroline Ellison was charged with criminal association.
Sam Bankman-Fried is accused, according to the indictment, of carrying out risky transactions with billions of dollars in funds deposited by clients on the FTX platform, without their being informed by the company Alameda. Research.
Since the bankruptcy of FTX on November 11, Sam Bankman-Fried has repeatedly argued publicly that he had not been at the helm of Alameda Research for several months, indirectly incriminating Caroline Ellison.
Was he the main decision maker?
An argument disputed by the public prosecutor, who claims that "SBF" remained the main decision-maker within Alameda until FTX filed for bankruptcy.
Apart from risky transactions through Alameda, he is also suspected of having invested some of this money in real estate in the Bahamas.
He is also accused of having made donations to Democratic politicians – always with funds from FTX clients – including Joe Biden during his presidential campaign.
Read alsoFrom crypto champion to bankruptcy, the FTX disaster
“If you have been involved in any offenses at FTX or Alameda, now is the time to come forward,” Damian Williams warned Wednesday, encouraging other alumni of both companies to work with the prosecution.
“We are moving quickly and our patience is not eternal.
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Five of the eight charges against him each provide for a maximum sentence of twenty years in prison.
The one who has long been seen as an iconoclastic genius of cryptocurrencies is therefore likely to spend the rest of his life in prison.
The CFTC estimates the total amount of funds misappropriated from FTX client accounts to be $8 billion.