In a letter to the judge published Saturday, prosecutors laid out plans to call customers, investors, and co-conspirators to testify in next week’s trial of Sam Bankman-Fried. The former CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX faces charges of fraud and conspiracy for allegedly misusing customer funds.
Investors and Customers to Testify in Fraud Trial of Crypto Magnate Sam Bankman-Fried
Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial, slated to begin next week, will feature investors and customers, according to a letter penned by Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. Additionally, there will be co-conspirator testimonies from FTX senior personnel such as Zixiao (Gary) Wang, Caroline Ellison, Nishad Singh and Ryan Salame.
Prosecutors say customer testimony will show that users deposited funds on FTX expecting the company would keep the assets safe and separate from its own funds. This relates to charges that Bankman-Fried violated customers’ trust, the letter discloses. Investors who bought FTX shares will testify about promises Bankman-Fried allegedly made that the exchange served as a custodian protecting user assets.
“The testimony of actual investors regarding their expectations for how FTX would operate as a ‘custodian’ for its customers, as the defendant represented, is directly relevant to how a reasonable investor would have viewed those representations when made about a cryptocurrency exchange,” the letter states.
Finally, cooperating witnesses like Singh, Ellison, Wang, and Salame who pleaded guilty to conspiring with Bankman-Fried will explain their understanding of his instructions and statements. Prosecutors argue in the letter that this reveals how the scheme operated. The high-profile trial is slated to begin next Tuesday in New York federal court. Bankman-Fried faces up to 115 years in prison if convicted on all counts.
What do you think about customers and investors testifying against the former FTX boss Sam Bankman-Fried? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below.
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