SEC Officially Indicts Bankman-Fried of $1.8 Billion Crypto Heist

• US regulator accused Bankman-Fried of a $1.8 billion fraud.
• Bahamas police arrested SBF at the request of the US government.
• SBF parents, Stanford Law professors Bankman and Fried, will no longer teach from next year.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States has officially accused Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the former CEO of FTX, of defrauding 90 US-based investors of over $1.8 billion via underhand means.

Bloomberg revealed specific details of the lawsuit filed by the SEC to the Southern District of New York, stating that Bankman-Fried misappropriated billions of dollars of clients funds for personal use. It added that FTX orchestrated a scheme to defraud equity investors who bought in on the assumption that the crypto business was flourishing.

SEC chairman Gary Gensler said:

We allege that Sam Bankman-Fried built a house of cards on a foundation of deception while telling investors that it was one of the safest buildings in crypto.

Moreover, the Royal Bahamas police arrested SBF at the request of the US government, based on a sealed indictment filed by the Department of Justice.

A statement from the Office of the Attorney General & Ministry of Legal Affairs of the Bahamas read:

The Bahamas and the United States have a shared interest in holding accountable all individuals associated with FTX who may have betrayed the public trust and broken the law.

The New York Times noted that the allegations against Bankman-Fried include conspiracy to conduct wire, securities fraud, and money laundering.

Concurrently, it has been reported that the parents of Bankman-Fried, who are both law professors at Stanford, would no longer be teaching in the school from next year. Stanford Daily reported that SBF’s father dropped his tax policy course when the family faced accusations of purchasing a $16.4 million vacation house with FTX’s money.