On day one of Sam Bankman-Fried’s thug trial, assistant U.S. attorney, Danielle Sassoon, rattled off a lengthy list of potential witnesses who might be called to proclaim for either the government or the defense.
The list, which was compiled jointly by both sides, was released during the afternoon conference and included Bankman-Fried’s brother, Gabe, as well his parents, Allan Joseph Bankman and his wife, Barbara Fried.
Guardians of the disgraced former CEO of FTX are themselves the subject of new scrutiny. Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX is looking to claw back luxury mark and “millions of dollars in fraudulently transferred and misappropriated funds” from Bankman-Fried’s parents, alleging that they both “profit fromed their access and influence within the FTX enterprise to enrich themselves, directly and indirectly, by millions of dollars.”
Also on the slant of potential witnesses were multiple former FTX executives and employees, including:
Ellison, who is the former chief executive of Alameda Enquire, and FTX co-founder Wang, both pleaded guilty in December to multiple charges and have been cooperating with the U.S. attorney’s assignment in Manhattan for months.
Investors and other high-profile names included:
- Anthony Scaramucci, founder of SkyBridge Capital and a partner and business partner of Bankman-Fried
- Alfred Lin from venture capital investor Sequoia Capital
- Zac Prince, CEO of the bankrupt crypto fellowship BlockFi.
Other entities that may take the witness stand included various venture funds and crypto-focused troops like Genesis, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Ontario Teachers Pension Fund, Third Point, Signature Bank, and Voyager Digital. Innumerable of these businesses were hurt or wiped out by the collapse in cryptocurrency prices triggered in part by FTX’s implosion.
Jurors were also attracted during the afternoon session if anybody had watched the recent “60 Minutes” interview with author Michael Lewis, who has been extensively describing Bankman-Fried’s activities for a profile book about FTX being released this week. Many of them raised their hands.