The Bahamas prosecutor’s office announced the arrest of Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTXthe international cryptocurrency market that recently collapsed, putting thousands of investors in a precarious situation.
A spokesman for the US attorney’s office in Manhattan confirmed that Bankman-Fried had been arrested, but declined to discuss any charges against him.
“We hope to post the indictment in the morning and we will have more to say at that time,” the prosecution said on Twitter.
“As a result of the notification received and the material that was included, it was deemed appropriate for the attorney general to seek the arrest of SBF, and to hold him in custody, in accordance with our country’s extradition act,” said the attorney general. from the Bahamas Ryan Pindery, according to the Archyde.com news agency.
Last month, FTX filed for bankruptcy in the US, leaving thousands of clients unable to withdraw their investments from the market.
It was the second largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, trading about $10 billion a day.
The “king” fallen from grace
In his prime, Bankman-Fried was seen as a younger version of legendary American investor Warren Buffet.
As of the end of October, he had an estimated net worth of more than $15 billion.
However, by his own account, he underestimated the large amount of cash needed to cover FTX client withdrawals, causing panic among clients.
A lot of crypto companies, the firms that deal with cryptocurrencies, have struggled with the contraction of the economy in general and concerns about the viability of cryptocurrencies in general.
Bankman-Fried resigned as CEO of FTX on November 11.
According to court documents filed earlier this month, FTX currently owes its 50 largest creditors almost $3.1 billion.