{"id":7626,"date":"2022-12-13T16:48:10","date_gmt":"2022-12-13T16:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ugandaupdatenews.com\/?p=7626"},"modified":"2022-12-13T16:52:42","modified_gmt":"2022-12-13T16:52:42","slug":"cryptocurrency-exchange-ftx-founder-sam-bankman-fried-arrested-in-bahamas-as-millions-of-people-lose-billions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/cryptocurrency-exchange-ftx-founder-sam-bankman-fried-arrested-in-bahamas-as-millions-of-people-lose-billions\/","title":{"rendered":"Cryptocurrency exchange FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried arrested in Bahamas as millions of people lose billions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ugandans have hailed the firm stand by Bank of Uganda that declared the cryptocurrency exchange FTX to be unsafe for investments . Cryptocurrency exchange is illegal in Uganda but open for investments in the Global North and some European countries .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Bank of Uganda should be commended for the adverts and public information they put out warning Ugandans that they would lose money if they invested in the cryptocurrency system which was not properly regulated. BoU came out strongly when there was wave of cryptocurrency more than three years ago,” Sam Okodi a financial expert told ugandaupdatenews.com <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another threat to cryptocurrency investments\u00a0is scams<\/em>. One of the dangers of buying bitcoin is that it is \u201cheld\u201d digitally and thus, can be stolen by talented fraudsters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now its has emerged that millions of people across the globe lost money which has promoted the arrest of Sam Bankman-Fried, (30) founder of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, in the Bahamas . Police said Bankman-Fried, 30 years old , was arrested for “financial offences” against laws in the US and The Bahamas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month, FTX filed for bankruptcy in the US, leaving many users unable to withdraw their funds. According to a court filing, FTX owed its 50 largest creditors almost $3.1bn (\u00a32.5bn).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the most serious allegations against Bankman-Fried is that he used billions of dollars of customer funds to prop up his investment trading company, Alameda. It is unclear how much people who have funds in the exchange will get back at the end of bankruptcy proceedings – though many experts have warned it may be a small fraction of what they deposited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking to the media this month, Bankman-Fried acknowledged that mistakes were made at the firm, but sought to distance himself from accusations of illegal activity.”I didn’t knowingly commit fraud, I don’t think I committed fraud, I didn’t want any of this to happen. I was certainly not nearly as competent as I thought I was,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also denied allegations that he must have been aware that Alameda was using FTX customer funds. “No that’s not true,” Bankman-Fried said, while going on to acknowledge that as chief executive he was ultimately responsible for any mishandling of funds. “That’s on me, one way or another,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The FTX exchange allowed customers to trade normal money for cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Cryptocurrencies are not currencies in the traditional sense, but are stored online and act more like investment vehicles or securities – often with a high degree of volatility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their anonymity means they have been favoured for criminal activities such as drug dealing and ransomware attacks, but their supporters say there is huge potential for innovation – and independence from governments. Bankman-Fried was once viewed as a young version of legendary US investor Warren Buffett, and as recently as late October had a net worth estimated at more than $15bn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before FTX’s collapse he seemingly delighted in giving his Twitter followers an insight into his lifestyle, which involved playing League of Legends while on phone calls, even while attempting to woo investors, and sleeping on a beanbag next to his desk in the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He had become well known in Washington DC as a political donor, mostly to Democratic politicians or groups, supposedly supporting pandemic prevention and improved crypto regulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bankman-Fried will be held in custody “pursuant of our nation’s Extradition Act,” the Attorney General of the Bahamas said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Earlier this evening, Bahamian authorities arrested Samuel Bankman-Fried at the request of the US Government, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY [Southern District of New York]. We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morning and will have more to say at that time,” the US Attorney’s office in Manhattan said in a tweet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wall Street regulators also said that they would be taking action against Bankman-Fried.” We commend our law enforcement partners for working to secure the arrest of Sam Bankman-Fried in the Bahamas on federal criminal charges,” US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) official Gurbir Grewal said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The Securities and Exchange Commission has separately authorised charges relating to Bankman-Fried’s violations of our securities laws, which will be filed publicly tomorrow in the Southern District of New York,” he added. Bankman-Fried had been due to testify about the collapse of FTX before the US Congress .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, he will now be unable to testify, according to Congresswoman Maxine Waters,\u00a0who said in a statement that she was surprised to hear that he had been arrested<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Background <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FTX, the owner and operator of the FTX.COM cryptocurrency exchange, was founded in 2019 by Mr Bankman-Fried, a former Wall Street trader, and ex-Google employee Gary Wang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It became the second largest crypto exchange in the world, trading about $10bn of cryptocurrencies a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But on 11 November FTX filed for bankruptcy protection after users pulled $6bn from the platform in three days and rival exchange Binance abandoned a rescue deal. At the same time, Mr Bankman-Fried resigned as FTX’s chief executive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The collapse of FTX came during a tumultuous year for the cryptocurrency industry. This year Bitcoin has lost more than 60% of its value, while other cryptocurrencies have also slumped.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ugandans have hailed the firm stand by Bank of Uganda that declared the cryptocurrency exchange FTX to be unsafe for<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7628,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[257],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7626","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international-financial-fraud"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/127985104_gettyimages-1240624212-1.jpg.webp","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4773,"url":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/ugandan-tycoon-charles-mbire-delighted-with-mtn-listing-on-the-uganda-securities-exchange-as-his-net-worth-is-set-to-go-up\/","url_meta":{"origin":7626,"position":0},"title":"UGANDAN TYCOON CHARLES MBIRE DELIGHTED WITH MTN LISTING ON THE UGANDA SECURITIES EXCHANGE AS HIS NET WORTH IS SET TO GO UP","author":"UgandaUpdate","date":"December 10, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Uganda tycoon Charles Magezi Mbire is a happy man following the successful listing of MTN Uganda Ltd on the Uganda stock exchange . Mbire is one of the biggest shareholders in the telecom giant now boasting of a subscribers base of 11 million Ugandans connected on the network . \u201cWe\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Business"","block_context":{"text":"Business","link":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/category\/national-news\/business-national-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16426,"url":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/billionaires-africa-ranks-the-10-richest-investors-on-the-uganda-securities-exchange-in-2026\/","url_meta":{"origin":7626,"position":1},"title":"Billionaires.Africa ranks the 10 richest investors on the Uganda Securities Exchange in 2026","author":"UgandaUpdate","date":"February 8, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"A 34% rally has lifted Uganda\u2019s Securities Exchange\u2014still a market where a few liquid stocks and a small circle of investors drive most of the action. Uganda\u2019s Securities Exchange may be small by global standards, but it consistently tells a familiar story: a few liquid counters drive most trading, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "National News"","block_context":{"text":"National News","link":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/category\/national-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_9436.webp","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_9436.webp 1x, https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_9436.webp 1.5x, https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_9436.webp 2x, https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_9436.webp 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14082,"url":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/energy-minister-nankabirwa-assures-ugandans-about-electricty-supply-stability-when-umeme-exits-the-market-on-april1st2025\/","url_meta":{"origin":7626,"position":2},"title":"Energy Minister Nankabirwa Assures Ugandans About Electricty Supply Stability When Umeme Exits The Market on April1st,2025","author":"UgandaUpdate","date":"March 19, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Ruth Nankabirwa has assured Ugandans about government\u2019s commitment to steady supply of electricity under Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) after Umeme's 20-year concession expires on March 30, 2025. \u201cThe Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (MEMD) wishes to reaffirm the Government\u2019s full\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "National News"","block_context":{"text":"National News","link":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/category\/national-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/nan.jpg","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4242,"url":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/mixed-feelings-as-mtn-offers-ugandans-the-largest-ipo-on-the-uganda-securities-exchange\/","url_meta":{"origin":7626,"position":3},"title":"MIXED FEELINGS AS MTN OFFERS UGANDANS THE LARGEST IPO ON THE UGANDA SECURITIES EXCHANGE","author":"UgandaUpdate","date":"October 12, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Considered \u00a0the largest IPO on the Ugandan market and will be delivered primarily through a digital paperless\/ green platform which is the first of its kind in East Africa.\u00a0Uganda government forced the company to list on USE in public interestThe offer and listing of MTN Uganda is in line with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Business"","block_context":{"text":"Business","link":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/category\/business\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/0f26497be3bb4241942907888228f47b.jpg","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/0f26497be3bb4241942907888228f47b.jpg 1x, https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/0f26497be3bb4241942907888228f47b.jpg 1.5x, https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/0f26497be3bb4241942907888228f47b.jpg 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11289,"url":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/president-museveni-lobbying-now-uae-firm-expresses-interest-to-develop-5-billion-uganda-oil-refinery\/","url_meta":{"origin":7626,"position":4},"title":"President Museveni lobbying : Now UAE firm expresses interest to develop $5 billion Uganda oil refinery","author":"UgandaUpdate","date":"January 24, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Alpha MBM Investments LLC, a UAE-based company has entered negotiations with Uganda over investing in their refinery project. The company is said to be an investment arm of a prominent member of the Royal family of the United Arab Emirates,\u00a0Sheikh\u00a0Mohammed\u00a0bin\u00a0Rashid\u00a0Al Maktoum.\u00a0Sheikh\u00a0Mohammed\u00a0bin\u00a0Rashid\u00a0Al Maktoum\u00a0visited Uganda last year as part of the efforts\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Oil and gas"","block_context":{"text":"Oil and gas","link":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/category\/oil-and-gas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/uae.jpg","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8685,"url":"https:\/\/prowebinhost.com\/anzu\/igg-investigating-ura-over-fraud-official-remanded-for-causing-financial-loss-of-ug-shs-9bn\/","url_meta":{"origin":7626,"position":5},"title":"IGG INVESTIGATING URA OVER FRAUD ,OFFICIAL REMANDED FOR CAUSING FINANCIAL LOSS OF UG.SHS.9BN","author":"UgandaUpdate","date":"April 7, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"By Our Reporters The Inspector General of\u00a0 Government (IGG ) led by Ms. Beti Kamya is Investigating Uganda\u2019s tax body \u2013Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) for \u00a0alleged corruption, fraudulent transactions that are making government lose revenues in billions leading to short fall in tax revenue\u00a0 collections . 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