Bankman-Fried to testify in fraud trial after ex-colleagues turned on him
NEW YORK: Sam Bankman-Fried plans to testify in his own defence at his criminal fraud trial, after his closest associates blamed the former billionaire for the collapse last November of his now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange.In a Wednesday (Oct 25) telephone conference with US District Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversees the case in Manhattan federal court, Bankman-Fried's lawyer Mark Cohen said the defense planned to call three other witnesses to testify briefly after prosecutors finish presenting their case."And our client is also going to be testifying," Cohen said.Taking the stand could allow Bankman-Fried, who has pleaded not guilty to fraud and conspiracy charges, to tell jurors face-to-face that while he made mistakes running FTX, he never intended to steal customers' money.Testifying carries significant risks, and will likely subject Bankman-Fried, 31, to a tough cross-examination by prosecutors armed with documents, messages and testimony from cooperating witnesses they can use to attack his credibility.Still, Bankman-Fried's penchant for risk and willingness to publicly discuss the case following his arrest may reflect his confidence he can convince at least one of the 12 jurors that he did not intend to commit fraud, legal experts said.Three former members of Bankman-Fried's inner circle, who pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors, testified that he directed them to commit crimes, and was aware his hedge fund Alameda Research had taken billions of dollars from FTX customers without their consent.Prosecutors have said Bankman-Fried used that money to prop up Alameda, make speculative investments, and donate more than US$100 million to US political candidates and campaigns.In the three weeks since the trial began, they have tried to prove that Bankman-Fried intended to defraud his customers, Alameda lenders and FTX equity investors.Defense lawyers have said some activities that prosecutors said amounted to theft of customer funds, such
