In a recent court filing, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was accused of paying $40 million to Chinese officials to unfreeze crypto accounts.
As the cryptocurrency industry continues to grow and evolve, so do the challenges and controversies surrounding it. One such controversy involves Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the founder of FTX, a major cryptocurrency exchange. SBF recently been accused with the corruption of Chinese officials to the tune of 40 million dollars. This scandal has sent shockwaves throughout the industry, raising questions about the ethics and legality of the actions taken by some of its most prominent figures.
FTX CEO Link to Chinese Government Officials
Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and former CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, also known as “SBF”, is now facing a new 13-count indictment from criminals. American authorities. One of the latest charges against SBF includes a charge of bribing a Chinese government official in a new replacement indictment, according to a filing by U.S. attorney Damian Williams. .
Section 105 of the filing claims that SBF and other associated parties orchestrated the transfer of approximately $40 million in cryptocurrency, which was to benefit one or more Chinese government officials. The complaint alleges that the transfer was made for the purpose of influencing and inducing officials to unblock cryptocurrency accounts at Alameda Research, a subsidiary of FTX. These accounts allegedly held over $1 billion worth of cryptocurrency.
According to the filing, in early 2021, Chinese law enforcement authorities froze some Alameda accounts on two of China’s most expansive crypto exchanges. The FTX founder was aware of the freeze and made various attempts to unfreeze the accounts, including trying to transfer cryptocurrency to deceptive accounts to circumvent China’s freeze orders.
Alameda’s trading activity was funded by an unfrozen cryptocurrency
The court filing points out that following several failed attempts to unfreeze the accounts, Samuel Bankman-Fried conferred with others and eventually consented and ordered a multimillion-dollar bribe in the purpose of lifting the freezing of accounts. Subsequently, when the accounts were unblocked under SBF’s direction, Alameda used unblocked cryptocurrency to fund other business activities, according to the US government investigation.
Previously, the former billionaire pleaded not guilty to eight counts related to the fall of FTX. Prosecutors say SBF appropriated billions of dollars in client funds to cover the losses of Alameda Research, its cryptocurrency-focused hedge fund.
In other news, YouTubers who endorsed FTX were hit with a $1 billion class action lawsuit earlier this month. In fact, there are several lawsuits against FTX and its endorsers as investors try to recoup their losses.