Sam Bankman Fried, the former boss of failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, is on board a plane bound for the United States from the Bahamas, where he faces fraud charges.
US authorities have said the 30-year-old is being extradited on suspicion of “one of the largest financial frauds in US history”.
Mr Bankman-Fried, who denies the charges, is expected to appear in court in New York on Thursday morning.
Two of his former associates have pleaded guilty to related charges.
FTX co-founder Gary Wang and Carolyn Ellison, the former head of cryptocurrency trading firm Alameda Research, were both charged with “frauds that contributed to the downfall of FTX,” Attorney Damien Williams for the Southern District of New York said. announced.
They are both now cooperating with the Southern District of New York, they said in a video released when court documents were released.
Mr Wang’s lawyer said his client accepted responsibility for his actions and took his responsibilities as a supporting witness seriously.
“Samuel Bankman Freud is now in FBI custody and is on his way back to the United States,” Mr. Williams said. “He will be transported directly to the Southern District of New York and will appear in court before a judge in that district as soon as possible.”
“If you participated in misconduct at FTX or Alameda, now is the time to move on,” he added. “We are moving fast and our patience is not eternal.”
Statement of U.S. Attorney Damian Williams on U.S. v. Samuel Bankman-Fried, Caroline Ellison, and Gary Wang pic.twitter.com/u1y4cs3Koz
— US Attorney SDNY (@SDNYnews) December 22, 2022
Ms Ellison and Mr Wang face separate charges from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Last week, Mr Bankman-Fried was also accused of “orchestrating a scheme to defraud equity investors in FTX”.
“As alleged, Mr. Bankman-Fried, Ms. Ellison, and Mr. Wang were active participants in a scheme to conceal material information from FTX investors, including artificially assisting Mr. Bankman-Fried and Ms. Ellison. Through the efforts of FTT Price, which served as collateral for undisclosed loans Alameda took out from FTX pursuant to its undisclosed, and virtually unlimited, line of credit,” the SEC’s enforcement According to Sanjay Wadhwa, Deputy Director of K Division.
“By secretly funneling FTX’s customer funds into Alameda’s books, the defendants concealed the real risks facing FTX’s investors and customers.”
FTX has filed for bankruptcy, leaving many unable to withdraw funds.
According to a court filing, FTX owes about $3.1bn (£2.5bn) to its 50 largest creditors.
One of the most serious allegations against Mr. Bankman-Fried is that he used billions of dollars in customer funds to prop up Alameda.
