FTX claims Sam Bankman-Fried looted $2.2 billion in ‘loans and payments’ as CEO

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been accused of taking more than $2 billion in “loans and payments” from the company while he was CEO. Democratic megadonor SBF is facing allegations of massive fraud using its cryptocurrency exchange and trading company.

Intelligencer reports that Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, received a staggering $2.2 billion in loans and payouts despite allegedly committing massive fraud within the company, according to a late night announcement by liquidators on Wednesday. As federal investigators build their case against Bankman-Fried, who currently faces 12 charges including money laundering and bank fraud, the revelation could have a significant impact on his case.

Bankman-Fried reportedly secured more than $2 billion in loans, mostly through the hedge fund he founded, Alameda Research, according to bankruptcy court filings. Alameda allegedly embezzled customer deposits from FTX accounts in a bid to cover its losses after losing large sums of money on bad investments.

Bankman-Fried wasn’t the only executive receiving compensation through Alameda. Nishad Singh, a former engineering director, received $587 million, while Gary Wang, a co-founder, received $246 million. Ryan Salame, a former co-CEO, received $87 million, and John Samuel Trabucco, former co-CEO of Alameda, received $25 million. Bankman-Fried’s ex-girlfriend, Caroline Ellison, who also served as CEO of Alameda, received loans and payments totaling a relatively modest $6 million.

The combined $3.2 billion that top executives at FTX and Alameda actually lent to each other does not include the $240 million spent on luxury real estate in the Bahamas or direct political contributions from FTX, according to the report. new management of the company. This most recent revelation appears to back up earlier claims by Caroline Ellison, which she made in December when she told a judge that Alameda had secretly loaned billions of dollars to company executives.

Ellison, Wang and Singh are all reportedly cooperating with the government on their guilty pleas to fraud charges and likely helping federal investigators verify these unusual loans and payments as they build a case against Bankman-Fried. SBF, under house arrest and residing with his parents, pleaded not guilty.

The news released Wednesday is encouraging for FTX clients who are owed money, as the company has promised to recover billions of dollars that Bankman-Fried and other top executives misplaced. But there’s still a long way to go before everyone is whole: FTX’s new management said that while “the amount and timing of potential monetary rallies cannot be predicted at this time”, the company is confident that further research will uncover even more “actives”. , Liabilities and Transfers” hidden in the company’s woefully poor accounting records.

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Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering free speech and online censorship issues. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan