- Sam Bankman-Fried was detained on December 13th.
- The allegations against SBF will be investigated by the federal government.
Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was detained on December 13 at the US government’s request by Bahamian authorities, according to a statement from the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. The co-founder of FTX was due to testify before the US Congress the day before his arrest.
Two nations are looking into Sam Bankman-Fried
According to the allegations, Bankman-Fried committed money laundering, wire and securities fraud, and conspired to do so. The Royal Bahamas Police Force released an official statement following SBF’s arrest, which caused quite a stir in the crypto community, confirming that the offenses for which SBF was accused in the United States were also illegal in the Bahamas.
The Bahamas’ Prime Minister, Philip Davis, stated that because FTX betrayed the public trust and broke the law, both countries have a stake in holding all individuals connected to the company accountable.
A federal investigation will look into SBF’s role in transferring FTX funds to the Bahamas, according to a report from Bloomberg on December 10th. Officials from the Department of Justice met with FTX’s overseers to discuss the data needed for additional investigation. The Department also planned to investigate whether SBF transferred FTX money to Alameda Research through a middleman.
Authorities in the Bahamas were looking into FTX at the same time. Just two weeks ago, the Bahamas Attorney General (AG) and Minister of Legal Affairs Ryan Pinder declared that FTX Digital Markets’ operations were being looked into by both civil and criminal authorities. The case involved the Bahamas’ Securities Commission, Financial Intelligence Unit, and Financial Crimes unit.
On December 13, the recently appointed FTX CEO John Jay Ray III gave a testimony before the House Financial Services Committee. He stated that even though he wouldn’t comment on SBF’s claims, he would continue to ask him for information about the ongoing investigation.