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The disgraced crypto executive claimed that he merely acted on various lapses in the company's data retention policy. Disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) tried to explain his rationale for deleting corporate messages during a closed-door testimony without the presence of the trial's jury on Oct. 26. When prompted as to why he started using corporate communications on the encrypted messaging app Signal by prosecutor Danielle Sassoon of the Southern District of New York, SBF claimed that he only did so with the approval of FTX counsel Daniel Friedberg. However, SBF later said that while counsel approved the use of Signal, he never sought prior approval before utilizing the app's auto-delete feature. "At some point I remember changing my toggle to one week auto delete ," the former crypto executive said, adding that the practice has been in place since 2021. "Did you seek approval?" Asked Sassoon. "No," replied SBF. When asked to exp...

In one of the more surprising revelations of his ongoing trial, Sam Bankman-Fried had a meeting planned with former US President Bill Clinton just weeks before the FTX collapse. Indeed, the trial revealed that in September 2022, Bankman-Fried had meetings with several politicians. Along with Bill Clinton, Sam Bankman-Fried had meetings scheduled with New York Governor Kathy Hochul and New York Mayor Eric Adams. Moreover, the meetings had been uncovered to jury members during the testimony of an FBI agent amid the ongoing fraud trial. Source: Bloomberg Also Read: Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Says FTX Spending Was Not ‘Reckless’ Sam Bankman-Fried had Meetings Planned With Several Politicians The ongoing trial of FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried has seemingly dominated headlines. It has captured the attention of most as it unfolds the details of one of the largest financial crimes in US history. Subsequently, the man responsible is now facing more than 100 yea...

Amidst a courtroom setting, Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Kudla unveiled a striking revelation: the Department of Justice’s estimation places the potential duration of this legal saga at an intriguing four to five weeks. A suspenseful legal odyssey awaits former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, spanning a duration of at least 21 days within the hallowed halls of justice. This gripping narrative unfolds its first chapter on October 4, embarking on an epic journey that shall persist until November 9, as meticulously detailed in a freshly unveiled trial calendar, now accessible to the public eye. As the burgeoning trial calendar unfurls on September 28, the anticipation intensifies, commencing with the riveting spectacle of jury selection on October 3. The grand premiere of the Bankman-Fried trial , a pivotal moment of reckoning, is slated for October 4, marked by a profound exploration of seven formidable fraud charges laid bare before an eager audience. Within thi...

FTX Claimants Data Compromised in Kroll’s Security Incident Beleaguered crypto exchange FTX took to X on August 25 to inform its customers, creditors, and the community that its claims agent Kroll has suffered a cyber security breach. The incident has compromised non-sensitive customer data of certain claimants in the pending bankruptcy case. advertisement FTX said Kroll currently notifying individuals affected by the cyber security incident measures they can take to protect themselves. The bankrupt crypto exchange cleared that its account passwords and systems are safe. “The incident occurred at Kroll, and Kroll is notifying affected individuals directly with measures that customers can take to protect themselves. FTX account passwords were not maintained by Kroll, and FTX’s own systems were not affected.” Moreover, FTX Debtors have reached out to Kroll and closely monitoring the situation. Kroll disclosed to debtors that they have prom...

Sam Bankman-Fried, the co-founder of FTX, is seeking space outside detention weekly to prepare for his upcoming trial. His attorneys rejected a two-day-a-week release proposal offered by the U.S. government. Detention conditions challenged Bankman-Fried has been in a New York jail for a week, but he is requesting to be release d five days a week so that he may work on his defense with his attorneys at the federal courthouse in Manhattan. The disgraced entrepreneur’s attorneys claimed in a letter sent on Aug. 18 to U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan that Bankman-Fried couldn’t thoroughly review the massive amount of documents in his case while he was detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Bankman-Fried, 31, had his $250 million bail revoked last week for allegedly attempting to tamper with witnesses. You might also like: Binance CEO criticizes Sam Bankman Fried’s actions In a letter to U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan, attorneys...

Several collapses in the past year have highlighted centralization problems, while fragmentation remains another hurdle in this nascent sector. True decentralization is something that many crypto projects strive for, but the result is often too complicated for everyday users to rely on. So, what’s the solution? The high-profile failures of big industry players — namely the cryptocurrency exchange FTX — exposed just how centralized the crypto space has become. Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried now faces a flurry of criminal charges amid allegations that his decision-making directly affected the exchange’s collapse. Challenges of true decentralization While true decentralization has been touted as crucial for unlocking this nascent market’s potential, some protocols that meet this requirement are simply too complicated to use. Poor interfaces and convoluted mechanisms mean customers are at a higher risk of making costly mistakes or even losing their funds altogether. It’s little wonder t...

Standard Chartered Bank has revised its bitcoin price prediction, forecasting a rise to $120,000 by the end of 2024. The renewed push for a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) by BlackRock and other institutions could potentially propel the cryptocurrency even higher. BTC to the moon? Standard Chartered Bank has increased its bitcoin (BTC) price prediction, forecasting that the digital asset could reach $120,000 by the end of 2024. This updated forecast comes after the bank initially projected a price target of $100,000 in April 2023. Geoff Kendrick, the bank’s top foreign exchange analyst, highlighted that the recent rise in miner profitability would reduce bitcoin supply, contributing to higher price s, Reuters reports. The forecast comes amidst the market’s significant downturn that started last year, coupled with several high-profile bankruptcies and scandals, including the disgraced Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX saga. You might also like: Hong Kong pushes HSBC ...

Palihapitiya did concede the crypto sector has “pushed more boundaries” than other startup sectors which may have attracted the SEC’s attention. Regulators in the United States have choked out the cryptocurrency sector to the point of death according to Bitcoin (BTC) bull and billionaire tech investor Chamath Palihapitiya. “Crypto is dead in America,” he boldly claimed in an April 22 episode of the All-In podcast. Palihapitiya’s comment came in response to the news that cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is now considering a move offshore. He pointed the finger at Gary Gensler, the Chair of the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission (SEC): “Crypto is dead in America. I mean now you have Gensler even blaming the banking crisis on crypto — so the United States authorities have firmly pointed their guns at crypto.” While Palihapitiya said that the U.S. likely views crypto as a threat to its “establishment,” the tech investor did however attribute some fault to the sector: “In fairness to the ...

The Shark Tank star said all unregulated exchanges are seeing “massive outflows” right now, and rightly so. Unregulated crypto exchanges will continue to fall like dominoes post-FTX, with plenty more “meltdowns” to come, warns Shark Tank star and investor Kevin O’Leary. O’Leary, a former spokesperson and proponent for the now-bankrupt FTX exchange, told Kitco anchor David Lin in a Jan. 17 interview that the collapse was just one in a long line of “unregulated exchanges” likely to fail: “If you’re asking me if there’s going to be another meltdown to zero? Absolutely. 100% it’ll happen, and it’ll keep happening over, and over and over again.” Unregulated exchanges are those that aren't subject to regular auditing, aren’t registered and regulated by a securities commission, and don’t operate under rules similar to traditional stock exchanges and brokerages. “Well, all of these exchanges, all the unregulated exchanges are having massive outflows right now. Smart money has got the joke...

The entire world is witnessing the ordeal that followed suit after the collapse of FTX . As Sam Bankman-Fried sits under house arrest and pens down an elaborate blog post, media houses across the globe were evidently curious. Back in December, SBF was granted a $250 million bail. It has been recognized as the highest pre-trial bail bond in the history of the United States. Considering the magnitude of the bail, the judge reportedly asked two other individuals of “considerable means” to sign the bond. However, the identities of these guarantors were undisclosed. Contesting the same, eight media houses including the Associated Press, Bloomberg, CNBC, Dow Jones, The Financial Times, Insider, and the Washington Post wrote a letter to the New York District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan. Attorneys from Davis Wright Tremaine LLP were representing these media houses. According to the letter, the attorneys argued that the public entailed the right to know the guarantors of SBF . The...

With every passing day, new revelations with respect to FTX and its past are being made. A few hours back, Bloomberg reported that the bankrupt crypto exchange used its native token FTT to pay for its Blockfolio takeover deal. Citing financial statements obtained and documents reviewed, Bloomberg revealed, “FTX paid roughly $84 million in 2020 to take a majority stake in Blockfolio, in what was then among the largest crypto acquisitions. About 94% was paid in FTT tokens, a cryptocurrency that FTX created.” The report also chalked out that at the time the Blockfolio deal was announced, news outlets reported FTX financed it with a mix of cash, crypto, and equity, without giving further details. The agreement gave FTX a 52% equity stake in Blockfolio and valued the company at almost $160 million. The financial statements also showed that there was an option to buy the rest within two years. FTX , the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange, used a token it invented to fun...

Crypto investor sentiment saw a slight upswing, but the potential of a deep liquidity crisis in the sector could keep investors at bay. 2022 was a near-unprecedented year of extremes and black swan events for the crypto market, and now that the year is about to wrap up, analysts are reflecting on the lessons learned and attempting to identify the trends which may point to bullish price action in 2023.  The collapse of Terra Luna, Three Arrows Capital and FTX created a credit crunch, a severe reduction in capital inflows and an increased threat that additional major centralized exchanges could collapse. Despite the severity of the market downturn, a few positives have emerged. Data shows long-term hodlers and smaller-sized wallets are actively accumulating during this period of low volatility. While the market continues to see red, positives are emerging. Let’s dive in on the positive and negative data points. Low liquidity and losses abound When liquidity was flooding into the market...