Federal prosecutors in Manhattan accused Bankman-Fried of directing the switch of no less than $40 million of cryptocurrency to profit Chinese authorities officers.
They stated Bankman-Fried directed the bribe in an effort to unfreeze accounts belonging to his hedge fund, Alameda Research, that Chinese authorities had frozen. The accounts held greater than $1 billion of cryptocurrency, US prosecutors stated.
The accounts had been unfrozen after the bribe cost was transferred round November 2021 from Alameda’s most important buying and selling account to a non-public cryptocurrency pockets, in accordance with the brand new indictment.
After the accounts had been unfrozen, Bankman-Fried authorised a switch of tens of thousands and thousands of {dollars} of extra cryptocurrency to finish the bribe, prosecutors stated.
A spokesman for Bankman-Fried didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
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US District Judge Lewis Kaplan scheduled a courtroom listening to for Thursday after prosecutors requested for Bankman-Fried to be arraigned on the brand new, 13-count indictment. The new cost will increase the strain on the 31-year-old former billionaire, who had beforehand pleaded not responsible to eight counts over the collapse of FTX. Prosecutors say Bankman-Fried stole billions of {dollars} in buyer funds to plug losses Alameda.
Prosecutors final month unveiled 4 new counts in opposition to Bankman-Fried, accusing him of orchestrating an unlawful marketing campaign donation scheme to purchase affect in Washington. He has not but been arraigned on the brand new costs.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com