FTX former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is facing new criminal charges after a judge unsealed a new 12-count indictment against him on February 23rd, as reported by Bloomberg Law.
SBF is charged in a new indictment with various offenses, including conspiracy to commit bank fraud, wire fraud, securities fraud, and operating an unlicensed money transfer business.
Additionally, the indictment alleges that he conspired to defraud the Federal Election Commission and made unlawful political contributions, among other crimes.
He is accused of having political contributions made in the names of two other FTX executives to avoid being known as a left-leaning partisan or having his name attached to some Republican candidates.
The new indictment alleges that SBF collaborated to deceive a bank by misrepresenting an account’s purpose for trading and market making when it was actually meant for receiving and transmitting customer funds in running a crypto exchange.
FTX’s SBF Charges May Impact Political Fundraising In 2024
However, the new charges, unsealed in federal court in Manhattan, also refer to two people who participated in the alleged campaign finance scheme. The US says they helped illegally seek to influence the regulation of cryptocurrency by donating millions of dollars to Democrats and Republicans.
Ryan Salame and Nishad Singh, both former executives of FTX, ranked as the biggest political contributors in the FTX network, donating a total of $70.5 million during the 2022 midterm elections.
SBF also gave $5.6 million during the election cycle. Neither Salame nor Singh have been charged, and lawyers for both did not respond to calls and emails seeking comment.
The indictment outlines how SBF allegedly misappropriated billions of dollars of customer deposits to support his empire, including making speculative investments, donating to charity, trying to influence crypto policy in Washington, and enriching himself.
The new charges against SBF could complicate the fundraising efforts of both Republicans and Democrats as they gear up for the 2024 presidential election cycle.
Nevertheless, Bankman-Fried is currently under house arrest on a $250 million bond and has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges to his previous eight criminal charges.
He is awaiting an October trial, and his spokesperson has declined to comment on the matter. Damian Williams, US attorney for the Southern District of New York, said, “We are hard at work and will remain so until justice is done.”
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