FTX founder sentenced to 25 years in prison in crypto fraud case

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - FTX's founder and former CEO Samuel Bankman-Fried on Thursday was sentenced to 25 years in prison in fraud and conspiracy case that saw the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange platform and a related hedge fund.

"I was the CEO of FTX and I was responsible," Bankman-Fried told at Manhattan federal court in New York, adding: "It haunts me every day," according to media reports.

Bankman-Fried, 32, faced multiple charges involving the implosion of FTX, which was once the world's third-largest crypto trading platform by daily volume, and its relation to hedge fund Alameda Research's trading accounts.

The charges included wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud against FTX customers and against lenders to Alameda Research, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit commodities fraud against FTX investors, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Although Bankman-Fried argued that there was "no loss" at FTX, Judge Lewis Kaplan revealed Thursday that he found total loss of the fraud more than $550 million.

Judge Kaplan also ordered a forfeiture of $11.2 billion.

After its implosion in late 2022, FTX recovered $7.3 billion in cash and assets, according to the company’s attorney in April 2023.

Bankman-Fried was convicted on seven counts in November by jury who held him responsible for approximately $10 billion of customer deposits that went missing in 2022.