FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty of seven counts of fraud and conspiracy for his role in his cryptocurrency empire.
The jury in federal court in Manhattan came to their verdict following 15 days of testimony—during which Bankman-Fried himself took the stand—and about four and a half hours of deliberations.
The prosecution in the case has argued that 31-year-old Bankman-Fried set up massive campaign-finance fraud scheme to buy favorable treatment from politicians in Washington DC for his crypto empire.
According to prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, Bankman-Fried paid out more than $100 million in funds stolen from FTX customers then illegally routed much of that money through two top lieutenants to maximize his influence in Washington.
In other words, prosecutors argued successfully that Bankman-Fried committed fraud by misallocating customer funds, and then he conducted a vast, illegal political influence-peddling scheme with that money.
The jury convicted on all seven criminal counts that the prosecution had sought, including wire fraud and conspiracy, in connection with events that caused $8.7 billion of FTX customer money to go missing.
Bankman-Fried has been in state custody since his bail was revoked over accusations of witness tampering in August. He had been arrested in the Bahamas in December.
Sentencing is set for March 28. Bankman-Fried faces up to 110 years in prison.
PHOTO: Sam Bankman-Fried in 2021
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