- Most of the assets of Sam Bankman-Fried have been seized by the Government.
- The largest allocation confiscated is 55,273,469 shares of Robinhood.
- The value of FTX before the collapse was US$32 billion.
According to a new court filing, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) may have nearly $700 million worth of assets forfeited if he is convicted of fraud. SBF was arrested on December 12, 2022 by the Bahamian authorities and is facing eight charges related to the collapse of FTX, including money laundering, political campaign finance, and wire and securities fraud. If convicted, he could face up to 115 years in prison.
U.S. Federal Prosecutor Damian Williams has stated that the government is looking to take control of three of SBF’s associates’ famous crypto exchange accounts. In new court documentation from January 20, Williams mentioned that “the Government respectfully gives notice that the property is subject to forfeiture as a result of the offenses described in Counts against Samuel Bankman-Fried.”
The filing states that most of the assets were seized by the government between January 4 and January 9, 2023, and that the government is seeking to claim “all money and assets” belonging to three individual crypto exchange accounts.
The largest allocation of assets seized is 55,273,469 shares of Robinhood, which is worth approximately $525.5 million at the time of writing. Other assets seized include $94.5 million in Silvergate Bank, $49.9 million in Farmington State Bank, and $20.7 million in ED&F Man Capital Markets Inc.
After being arrested in the Bahamas, SBF was transferred to U.S. custody on December 21, 2022 and appeared in court on December 22 to face the criminal charges related to the collapse of FTX. He was released on a $250 million bond and is required to wear an electronic bracelet, appear in court on a certain date, and not conduct transactions over $1,000 (excluding attorney’s fees) without court approval.
FTX filed for bankruptcy under chapter 11 on November 11, 2022, and SBF resigned from his position as CEO. He has since been replaced by John Ray III, who previously worked as the Chairperson of Enron Creditors Recovery Corp.
The value of FTX prior to its collapse was $32 billion, but it fell to zero after it was revealed that SBF and other insiders were using billions of dollars in customer funds for various criminal practices. Despite this, SBF has maintained that he does not see himself as having criminal liability in the collapse of FTX.