• The US Department of Justice is intervening in the brouhaha between FTX and other parties, seeking to seize Robinhood Markets shares related to Sam Bankman-Fried, who was the founder and former CEO of FTX.
• These shares are valued at around $465 million, and FTX creditors have filed judicial actions to try and recover them.
• Sam Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to allegations of running a “fraud of epic proportions” at FTX, using customer deposits for his own financial gain.
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is now stepping in to take control of the situation involving the now-defunct crypto exchange FTX and other parties. The DOJ is now working on a plan to seize Robinhood Markets shares related to Sam Bankman-Fried, who was the founder and former chief executive officer of FTX. These shares in contention are valued at around $465 million.
FTX creditors have launched judicial actions in an attempt to recover the shares. This has prompted the DOJ to intervene in order to determine the rightful owner of the shares. DOJ attorney Seth B. Shapiro stated that a court hearing will be scheduled to decide the disposition of the seized Robinhood shares and bank account assets.
The allegations against Bankman-Fried of cheating consumers and investors have been officially refuted by him. He pleaded not guilty on Tuesday in a New York Federal Court. Sam Bankman-Fried was accused of running a “fraud of epic proportions” at FTX for years, pocketing customer deposits to use for his own financial gain. This included using the funds for his other company, Alameda Research, real estate purchases, and political contributions.
Claims to shares of the stock-trading software have been made by FTX, the cryptocurrency trading platform BlockFi, and liquidators in Antigua. FTX attempted late last month to prevent BlockFi from acquiring control of the Robinhood shares by claiming its creditors had a right to the shares. It remains to be seen who will ultimately be declared the rightful owner of the shares.
The DOJ’s intervention in the matter marks a significant development in the ongoing brouhaha involving FTX and other parties. It is expected that the court hearing will soon be scheduled to decide the fate of the seized Robinhood shares and assets.