Sam Bankman-Fried inner circle to testify today

A young entrepreneur who made a mistake running a crypto empire, or a liar who stole people's money and used it to enrich himself? In the early hours of Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried's six-week trial, the tone between his defense attorney and the prosecution was tense.

The former FTX CEO faces a total of seven charges related to fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud. If convicted, he could face up to 100 years in prison.

During the trial, SBF appeared to be focused on his defense strategy, constantly checking his laptop and lawyers' papers. During his opening statement, the defense attorney turned his attention to the 12 jurors who will decide whether SBF intentionally misappropriated FTX client funds or if mistakes were made in good faith.

Related: Sam Bankman-Fried FTX trial — 5 things you need to know

Two witnesses testified on the first day of the trial: French trader Marc Julillard, who lost more than $100,000 worth of 4 Bitcoin (BTC) in November 2022, and SBF's personal friend and former employee of Alameda Research and FTX, Adam Yedidia.

FTX's advertising campaigns, celebrity endorsements and SBF's tweets are among the evidence used by prosecutors to prove that SBF is defrauding customers.

But according to the defense, it's okay to hire Tom Brady for commercials and file for bankruptcy during a market downturn.

The third day of the trial begins at approximately 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time in the federal courthouse in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Yedidian's second appearance at the trial, and FTX co-founder Gary Wang is a key witness.

Cointelegraph is on the ground in New York with the latest updates on the trial. Follow live updates here.