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January 4th, 2023 
Awake Goy 
Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, pleaded not guilty to fraud charges in U.S. District Court in Manhattan on Tuesday.
The 30-year-old, who was recently extradited to the U.S. from the Bahamas, is facing eight charges from federal prosecutors related to the fall of his crypto empire, which at one point gave him a net worth of $26 billion. The charges include wire fraud, securities fraud, violating campaign finance law, and conspiracy charges. “He pleads not guilty to all counts," Bankman-Fried's lawyer, Mark Cohen, said in court, the AP reported.
FTX imploded suddenly in November—essentially running out of money to honor customers' withdrawals—and in the aftermath, numerous reports painted the picture of a dangerously intertwined enterprise. FTX had used billions of dollars in customer deposits to prop up the now-bankrupt hedge fund Alameda Research, which Bankman-Fried also founded and which traded crypto on the FTX exchange, the reports said.
Bankman-Fried's not guilty plea was expected. Highly unusual for such cases, he did a press tour before being detained. During that time, he said that he "fucked up," but ultimately deflected responsibility. He claimed that he essentially did not know how his own exchange—and its sister hedge fund—were being run. Alameda's CEO was Caroline Ellison, who pleaded guilty to fraud charges and is cooperating with prosecutors.
The collapse of FTX and Bankman-Fried's public image as a benevolent and regulation-friendly billionaire sent shockwaves through the crypto industry and Washington, D.C, where he had gained influence. Bankman-Fried was a prolific political donor and testified before Congress in 2021. He is currently out on a record $250 million bail, and a trial date has been set for October.
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