The game is up for Sam Bankman-Fried
The former boss of FTX has been charged with eight criminal counts
![(FILES) In this file photo taken on November 13, 2022 (FILES) In this file photo illustration taken on November 13, 2022, shows the logo of cryptocurrency FTX, reflected in an image of former chief executive Samuel Bankman-Fried, in Washington, DC - The US Securities and Exchange Commission charged disgraced cryptocurrency tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried on December 13, 2022, with defrauding customers of billions of dollars, a day after he was arrested in the Bahamas at the request of the US. Bankman-Fried had "built a house of cards on a foundation of deception" in his dealings with investors in his FTX crypto firm, the SEC said. (Photo by Stefani Reynolds / AFP) (Photo by STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)](https://www.economist.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1424,quality=80,format=auto/content-assets/images/20221217_FNP001.jpg)
Only a month has elapsed since Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of ftx, a crypto exchange, placed the firm, along with Alameda Research, its sister hedge fund, into bankruptcy proceedings. The exchange was unable to meet customers’ withdrawal requests; the problem, it became clear, was that some $8bn of customer assets had ended up in the custody of Alameda, and were missing. In the intervening days Mr Bankman-Fried has given countless interviews in which he has apologised, appeared confused by the unravelling of his empire, pleaded ignorance and generally tried to shift the blame.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Chained”
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