SBF of FTX ruined? Authorities seize $697 million

SBF said it only had $100,000 left, yet the U.S. justice system seized $700 million in assets tied to Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of FTX.

Among the assets seized are 55 million shares of Robinhood stock, held by Sam Bankman-Fried and Gary Wang, worth nearly $500 million.

In late 2022, Sam Bankman-Fried gave his first interview after the FTX scandal. The former CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange defended himself from any scam or personal enrichment.

SBF claimed to have only 100,000 dollars in the bank. The authorities obviously prove him wrong. Prosecutors have ordered and obtained the seizure of nearly $ 700 million in assets belonging to the co-founder of FTX.

The bulk of these assets are shares of Robinhood stock, which Sam Bankman-Fried acquired last year. Their value, at current prices, is estimated at more than $526 million.

For the federal authorities, these shares were purchased by the executive with money from customers of the platform. The prosecutor is therefore challenging the ownership of these assets, which are also being claimed by other parties, including BlockFi’s creditors and FTX’s managers.

SBF, the former CEO of FTX, has chosen to plead not guilty

Out on $250 million bail, the deposed former CEO of crypto exchange FTX has chosen to plead not guilty to the 8 counts for which he faces 115 years in prison. A strategy in contrast to former Alameda Research CEO and SBF’s former girlfriend, Caroline Ellison, and FTX co-founder Gary Wang, who chose to plead guilty to criminal charges and are cooperating with authorities to reduce their future prison sentences.

The assets, attributed to FTX Digital Markets, are valued at $6 million. In addition, nearly $50 million deposited with the U.S. bank Moonstone was also seized. The money is attributed to the FTX management team.

Finally, the authorities took control of three Binance accounts. This time they did not specify the value of the assets held in these accounts at the world’s largest exchange.