Sam Bankman-Fried arrest updates: Former FTX CEO denied bail due to flight risk

Bankman-Fried oversaw the crypto exchange as it plunged into bankruptcy.

ByAaron Katersky and Max Zahn
Last Updated: December 13, 2022, 10:19 AM EST

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday charged Sam Bankman-Fried, the embattled former CEO of cryptocurrency giant FTX and trading firm Alameda Research, with defrauding investors.

"FTX's collapse highlights the very real risks that unregistered crypto asset trading platforms can pose for investors and customers alike," Gurbir S. Grewal, director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement, said in a statement.

Bankman-Fried was arrested Monday in the Bahamas after federal prosecutors in New York filed criminal charges contained in a sealed indictment, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force. He appeared in court in the Bahamas on Tuesday and was denied bail after a judge determined he was too much of a flight risk.

Key headlines:

Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Dec 13, 2022, 8:32 AM EST

What to know about former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried?

Sam Bankman-Fried, the 30-year-old founder of FTX, quickly ascended to the top of the cryptocurrency sector, garnering goodwill in recent years as a philanthropist and leading proponent of industry regulation.

The cover of Fortune Magazine in August asked readers whether Bankman-Fried, known by some as "SBF," was "the next Warren Buffett."

PHOTO: In this file photo taken on Feb. 9, 2022, Samuel Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO of FTX, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
In this file photo taken on Feb. 9, 2022, Samuel Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO of FTX, testifies during a Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry hearing about "Examining Digital Assets: Risks, Regulation, and Innovation," on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images, FILE

After the sudden bankruptcy of FTX, however, he faced withering questions over the mismanagement of billions in customer funds.

Meanwhile, his net worth plummeted from $16 billion to $0 in less than a week, according to an estimate from Bloomberg.

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