Ex-Crypto King Sam Bankman-Fried Loses Bid to Dismiss Criminal Charges in FTX Collapse

A New York federal judge on Tuesday rejected arguments by Sam Bankman-Fried to dismiss charges against him stemming from the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange, FTX.

Judge Lewis Kaplan of Manhattan federal court denied Bankman-Fried’s motions to dismiss in a 41-page ruling issued less than two weeks after lawyers for the FTX founder argued for the dismissal in court.

"The defendant is wrong both factually and as a matter of law," Kaplan wrote of Bankman-Fried's argument to dismiss the top two counts against him, alleging he misappropriated customer funds from FTX to prop up trading positions taken by a separate investment fund he operated, Alameda Research. "The defendant’s assertion that the indictment does not allege any 'economic loss' to FTX customers appears to be factually incorrect."

Bankman-Fried’s lawyers asked the judge earlier this month to dismiss several counts in the indictment as his case moves toward trial this fall, including charges accusing him of misleading banks, lenders and customers and making illegal political campaign contributions. In a nearly two-hour hearing in federal court in lower Manhattan on June 15, they argued the evidence amassed by prosecutors does not support the legal charges filed against him.

Bankman-Fried, 31, stands accused of cheating investors and stealing deposits from customers of FTX, which was one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges before its collapse in November. He is accused of using the money to finance a lavish lifestyle and prop up risky trades he placed through Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency hedge fund firm he operated.