Sam Bankman-Fried blames Binance for media balance release: court evidence
Evidence filed in court as part of the ongoing criminal case against the former CEO of crypto exchange FTX, Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, shows that SBF believed Binance released Almeida's balance to the media in 2022.
On October 11, Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research, SBF, It created a note that will last until November 6, 2022, and that investors and other parties can reach out for bailouts.
According to the document, Bankman-Fried wrote that Binance was “engaging in a PR campaign against us.”
Binance “leaked a balance sheet; blogged about it; fed it to Coindesk; then publicly announced they were selling $500m of FTT while telling their customers to beware of FTX.”
In the year On November 2, 2022, CoinDesk reported that it had seen the balance sheet from Alameda and that the company was probably not in good standing. This was a key event leading up to the run on FTX and the eventual loss.
SBF also noted that FTX was not fully liquid despite being capitalized, with Ellison stating that only $4 billion of the $12 billion in customer assets held by the cash exchange could be withdrawn.
RELATED: Caroline Ellison Testimony: SBF Bribes Chinese Officials $150M To Release Funds
The document also lists Tron Networks founder and HubB advisor Justin Sun as an investor — though he is described as “closer to [Binance CEO] CZ”
Inner City Press, which was present at the hearing, reported on X (formerly Twitter) that Ellison Changpeng Zhao tweeted that she was “stressed” about getting rid of her stake in FTX Token (FTT).
Ellison: The tweet attributed the delay to anti-spam and nodes. But we just didn't have the money. AUSA: Are these tweets from CZ of Binance? Ellison: Yes. “We have decided to eliminate any FTT on our books,” he tweeted. I was worried.
— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) October 11, 2023
This is the second week of Bankman-Fried's criminal trial. He has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of fraud and embezzlement related to the FTX collapse.
A second trial is scheduled for sometime in March 2024, at which time SBF faces six other charges, including bank fraud and foreign bribery conspiracy charges.
Ellison has been a key witness in the trial so far and is scheduled to be cross-examined by defense attorneys on October 12.
Cointelegraph reporters are covering the hearing on the ground in New York. As the saga unfolds, check here for the latest updates.
Magazine: SBF testing underway, Mashinsky's test suite, Binance's market share shrinks: Hodler's Digest, October 1–7
