Dem Megadonor Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison

Sam Bankman-Fried in courtroom (composite image)

Convicted cryptocurrency fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried on Thursday received a prison sentence of 25 years.

A jury found Bankman-Fried guilty on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy-related charges in November and the New York probation department’s sentence recommendation was 100 years in prison, according to a February court filing pleading for a lighter sentence. Bankman-Fried’s lawyer had asked for a 60-78 month sentence, citing the convicted fraudster’s philanthropic ventures and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Read More

Commentary: Let Cryptocurrency Implode with FTX

Sam Bankman-Fried’s arrest makes for a fitting final act to this chapter of cryptocurrency history. The internet prodigy-turned-supervillain had been at large for a whole month since the spectacular collapse of his crypto trading platform, FTX. But Sam is no Butch Cassidy. Rather than vanishing, he spent his time tweeting, giving interviews, and most stupefying of all, making appearances at high-powered New York Times business conferences alongside the likes of Mark Zuckerberg and Janet Yellen. Tucker Carlson speculated at the time that Bankman-Fried’s lavish donations to Democratic politicians had afforded him de facto immunity from prosecution. It seems that the goodwill has now run out.

Read More

Michigan Senator Received $55,600 from FTX Employees Before Leading Crypto Bill

U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-MI, received at least $55,600 in donations this year from employees of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange platform that declared bankruptcy after allegedly misusing client funds.

Then, Stabenow, who as Agriculture Committee Chairwoman oversees the Commodities Future Trading Commission, a cryptocurrency regulator, sponsored legislation to regulate cryptocurrency.

Read More

Commentary: FTX and the Root of Our Financial Crisis

Both liberal and conservative commentators, whether talking about the Great Recession, the financial collapse and bailouts of recent vintage, or now the FTX cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme, have neglected the cultural and moral reasons for these repeated episodes of economic mess and criminality. Unless those causes are addressed, all the finger pointing and proposed “solutions” will be about as helpful as putting a bandage on a tumor. 

Read More

Disgraced Crypto Ex-CEO Was Plotting to Spend Nearly $1 Billion Boosting Dems, Reshaping American Politics: Report

Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of now-bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, had planned to become the biggest donor to the Democratic Party in 2024, a cycle in which he might have spent as much as $1 billion, according to investigative journalist Theodore Schleifer, writing for Puck News Wednesday.

The erstwhile billionaire filed in April, 2022, to incorporate an umbrella organization known as The Center for the Future in Delaware, according to Schleifer, citing corporate database Open Corporates. The organization intended to tackle a variety of hot-button issues ranging from pandemic preparedness to democracy reform, the foundation of which was the first salvo in a 50-year influence campaign designed to fundamentally transform American politics, Schleifer alleges, citing sources who spoke with Bankman-Fried’s aides.

Read More