Three men reportedly drove their car into the metal barricade outside Sam Bankman-Fried’s parent’s home where he is currently under house arrest, SBF’s lawyers claim. In a filing to the federal court, the lawyers for the former FTX CEO said the three men got out of the car after hitting the barricade and told a security guard guarding the home: “You won’t be able to stop us.” The unidentified trio were then able to drive away before security guards could record the car’s license plate. According to a Reuters report, the incident was described in a Jan. 19 court filing …

A former FTX chief lawyer has accused the company's US general counsel of channeling business to Sullivan & Cromwell (S&C) — the firm currently serving FTX as bankruptcy counsel. Daniel Friedberg, who was the chief regulatory officer of FTX until he resigned on Nov. 8, made the allegations as part of a Jan 19. court filing. The filing was a declaration in support of an FTX creditor’s objection to FTX’s plan to continue using S&C as its lawyers throughout its bankruptcy case. In the declaration, Friedberg alleges that FTX.US lead counsel Ryne Miller, a former partner at S&C channeled business …

Moonstone Bank, a rural Washington state bank that received an estimated $11.5 million investment from FTX’s sister company, Alameda Research, has announced today that it will be exiting the crypto space and returning to its "original mission" as a community bank. In a statement released by the bank — now known as Farmington State Bank — on Jan. 19, it cited that the change in strategy comes as a result of “recent events in the crypto assets industry and the changing regulatory environment surrounding crypto asset businesses.” As part of the bank’s initiative to "return to its roots," it shared …

John Ray, who took over as CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX prior to bankruptcy proceedings, has reportedly set up a task force to consider restarting FTX.com. According to a Jan. 19 report from the Wall Street Journal, Ray said everything was “on the table” when it came to the future of FTX.com, including a potential path forward with rebooting the exchange. FTX Trading, doing business as FTX.com, was one of roughly 130 companies under FTX Group that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2022. Ray reportedly was considering reviving the crypto exchange as part of efforts to make users …

In the wake of an eventful 2022 for the crypto space, many investors are now wondering what the future holds. Early this year, the crash course the Terra ecosystem went on sent the space into a downward spiral, sinking millions in investor funds in mere days. Most recently, one of the biggest centralized exchanges, FTX, filed for bankruptcy, also dragging down millions in customer assets. Such disastrous events have led a lot of crypto investors to start seeking protection and security, in the form of regulation. The crypto space is notoriously unregulated, but investors are suffering the consequences with losses …

Crypto media outlet CoinDesk is reportedly considering a potential sale as its parent company Digital Currency Group (DCG) looks to strengthen its balance sheet. According to the Wall Street Journal, CoinDesk has sought the help of investment bankers from financial advisory firm Lazard, who are helping the firm weigh options including a full or partial sale. You know, I just realized that Coindesk is for sale. pic.twitter.com/QqmBPOClpu — Charles Hoskinson (@IOHK_Charles) January 19, 2023 DCG has purportedly received multiple offers exceeding $200 million to buy out the media firm over the last few months, which would result in a phenomenal …

The CEO of crypto exchange FTX has rejected calls for its law firm Sullivan & Cromwell to be replaced as lead counsel in its bankruptcy case. John J. Ray III, who was appointed as the new FTX CEO on Nov. 11, filed a court motion on Jan. 17, arguing that Sullivan & Cromwell has been integral in taking control over the “dumpster fire” that was handed to him. Ray suggested that retaining their services is in the best interest of FTX creditors, arguing: “The advisors are not the villains in these cases. The villains are being pursued by the appropriate …

Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), former CEO of the FTX crypto exchange, used his influence in the crypto industry to inflate some coins prices through a coordinated strategy with FTX's sister company, Alameda Research, a New York Times report claimed on Jan. 18. As a way to keep FTX and the companies under its umbrella profitable, Bankman-Fried allegedly approached developers behind projects, insisting that they make their trading debuts on the exchange's platform. Following that, the report claimed that Alameda Research would buy some of these freshly listed coins to raise their value. After attracting projects and using its hedge fund to …

Media start-up Semafor said on Jan. 18 that it will attempt to buy back former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s $10 million share of the company, according to a January 18 report from the New York Times. The report stated that Semafor will seek to raise money from other sources to make up for what it is giving back. Scoop: Sam Bankman-Fried invested roughly $10 million of Semafor’s $25 million round, making him the company’s biggest outside investor. Semafor is buying back his interest and putting that money into a separate account while it raises new $$$https://t.co/3KQ5SwpDxQ — Ben Mullin (@BenMullin) …

After the collapse of major cryptocurrency exchange FTX in November 2022, former CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried was arrested by Bahaman authorities on Dec. 12. Just a day later, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed charges against him for allegedly defrauding investors and violating securities laws. On Dec. 22, Bankman-Fried was granted bail on a $250 million bond paid by his parents against the equity in their house. The bail order added that he would require “strict pretrial supervision,” including mental health treatment and evaluation. The former CEO faces eight criminal counts in the …

The final vote on European Union’s much-awaited crypto regulations called Markets in Crypto Assets regulation (MiCA) was deferred to April 2023. This marks the second delay in the final vote, earlier deferred from November 2022 to February. The latest delay is attributed to a technical issue where the official 400-page document couldn’t be translated into the 24 official languages of the EU, reported The Block. Legal documents like the MiCA, which were drafted in English, must comply with EU regulations and be published in all 24 official languages of the union. The first delay in November that deferred the final …

Venture capital firm Digital Currency Group (DCG) has told shareholders it is halting its quarterly dividend payments until further notice as it attempts to preserve liquidity. According to the letter sent to shareholders on Jan. 17, the firm is focused on “strengthening our balance sheet by reducing operating expenses and preserving liquidity.” Its financial issues are derived from the woes of its subsidiary, crypto broker Genesis Global Trading, which reportedly owes creditors more than $3 billion and DCG is also considering selling some of the assets within its portfolio. Customers are currently unable to withdraw funds from Genesis after it …