SBF Likely Considered $5 Billion Payment for Trump to Skip Election as FTX Fraud Trial Starts 

While Sam Bankman-Fried, often referred to as SBF, faces his fraud trial over the FTX debacle, more details about the former billionaire come to light. FTX famously collapsed in November 2022 after CoinDesk reported issues at the exchange and its trading firm, Alameda Research. At the time, crypto traders and investors lost billions, and the crypto market’s valuation fell below a trillion dollars.

Trump’s Billion Dollar Price Tag

During an interview with “60 Minutes,” Michael Lewis, the author of “Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon,” said that SBF was contemplating paying Donald Trump not to run for president. Lewis disclosed that Bankman-Fried was trying to determine the price Trump would accept in exchange for not running for re-election in 2024.

According to Lewis, who also wrote “The Big Short,” SBF was still contemplating this idea while FTX was starting to collapse around him. It remains unclear if the unconfirmed number of US $5 billion ($7.86 billion) came directly from then-President Donald Trump or someone close to him.

Lewis noted that this story is only shocking “if you don’t know Sam.” Apparently, SBF was also pondering the legal consequences, with Lewis stating,

In the end, no deal was reached, likely because FTX was imploding, and SBF simply did not have that kind of money.

Trial Starts for Several Counts of Fraud

Meanwhile, SBF’s trial begins this week in what could be described as the biggest fraud case in finance of the decade. Bankman-Fried is charged with numerous counts of wire fraud, securities fraud, and conspiracy. The trial is expected to last at least six weeks, though commentators expect it to go on for longer, due to the complexity of the case. SBF also faces a trial related to charges of money laundering and political corruption in 2024.

Ahead of the trial, some of SBF’s former colleagues and friends are sharing their side of the story, with many denying knowledge of the dire situation at FTX and especially Alameda. Jury selection is currently underway in this landmark case, which could potentially result in SBF facing over 100 years in federal prison.