The founder and CEO of the cryptocurrency trading platform FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, was arrested on charges of fraud, conspiracy to defraud, and money laundering. After being found guilty in his first trial in November of last year, the final result of his second trial was finally confirmed this time, and he will serve a 25-year prison sentence.
Sam Bankman-Fried stole as much as $8 billion from the platform, which had a huge impact on users. During the trial, he tried to claim that users had no actual losses, while his defense said that Sam Bankman-Fried only borrowed the funds to operate his sister company, Alameda Research, without realizing that the debt had accumulated.
Prosecutors had been considering a sentence of 40 to 50 years in prison, while the defense hoped for a sentence of no more than 6 and a half years. Judge Lewis Kaplan said during the final sentencing that Sam Bankman-Fried lied throughout the trial and showed no remorse, ultimately handing down a 25-year sentence.
