Unchained

The IRS sparked a storm of controversy when it released proposed new rules for crypto transaction reporting earlier this year. The new rules seek to define who is considered a broker, what types of transactions need to get reported, and the kinds of digital assets that need to be included, but many in the industry consider them overly broad and ultimately unworkable. 

Lawrence Zlatkin, VP of Tax at Coinbase, and Shehan Chandrasekera, Head of Tax Strategy at tax software firm CoinTracker, discuss the crypto industry’s specific objections to the proposed new rules, and what might be a better way forward. They also delve into how the regulations would apply to stablecoins and NFTs, potential blockchain-based solutions for the reporting requirements, and what the likely outlook and timeline for the proposals to come into effect are.  

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• What the newly proposed IRS regulations around crypto are and when they are likely to go into effect
• what entities qualify as a broker and why this may pose a problem
• what the implications for the industry are if these regulations were passed
• the number of additional reports the IRS is expecting to receive if these regulations are adopted
• how the regulations would apply to stablecoins and NFTs
• what the five types of brokers are under the proposed regulations and the three types that they exclude, according to Shehan
• the unprecedented amount of comments submitted
• what suggestions Coinbase and CoinTracker have in mind for better tax regulation
• why Lawrence thinks that DeFi exchanges should be treated the same as centralized ones
• whether people should have privacy concerns about the new proposals
• what some blockchain-based solutions for tax reporting are, such as attestation tokens
• what the next steps for the IRS proposed regulation are
• how long it will take to actually implement these regulations

• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Shehan Chandrasekera, Head of Tax Strategy at CoinTracker
• Lawrence Zlatkin, VP of Tax at Coinbase

Previous coverage of Unchained on crypto taxes, with appearances from Shehan and Lawrence:

• Everything You Need to Know About Filing Your 2022 Crypto Taxes
• Your 2021 Crypto Taxes: How to Handle NFTs, DAOs, Airdrops and More
• Everything You Need to Know About Your 2020 Crypto Taxes 
• Why You Shouldn’t Trust Crypto Exchange Reports for Your Taxes
• The IRS Is Cracking Down on Crypto Taxes: What You Need to Know 
• Could the Bank Secrecy Act Harm Crypto? Coin Center Thinks So
• Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (117th Congress)

Proposed rule:

• IRS proposed rule text: Gross Proceeds and Basis Reporting by Brokers and Determination of Amount Realized and Basis for Digital Asset Transactions
• U.S. Department of the Treasury, IRS Release Proposed Regulations on Sales and Exchanges of Digital Assets by Brokers
• CoinDesk: How the Crypto Industry Responded to the IRS Proposed Broker Rule
• Twitter thread from Ji Kim of Crypto Council for Innovation 
• CNBC: President Joe Biden to sign the bipartisan infrastructure bill⁠ into law—here's how crypto investors will be impacted
• IRS issues guidance, seeks comments on nonfungible tokens
• Coinbase first comment letter
• Coinbase second comment letter
• CoinTracker comment letter

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Tiffany Fong has had an unusual route to crypto fame. After losing most of her life savings in the Celsius bankruptcy, she began posting on YouTube about her experiences and eventually received some leaked documents, which she shared with The New York Times and on her channel. The leaks gave her some visibility, and that’s when Sam Bankman-Fried began following her on Twitter.  

Fong unexpectedly managed to carve out a relationship with the one-time crypto mogul, and after he was arrested last November, she chatted often and even met with him while he was under house arrest. From there, she became known for posting details of her conversations with Bankman-Fried and documents he shared with her, and went on to attend every day of his trial in person and do videos on them.  

On this episode of Unchained, Fong shares why she thinks SBF opened up to her, whether she ever had a romantic relationship with him, her unpleasant encounter with Sam Bankman-Fried’s mother at the trial, why she doesn’t really consider herself a crypto influencer, and what her plans are now that the trial is over. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• what Tiffany did before getting into crypto
• how Tiffany lost most of her life savings in the Celsius bankruptcy and how that jumpstarted her journey into the content creation space
• how she got in touch with Sam Bankman-Fried and got him to speak with her after FTX’s collapse
• the conversations Tiffany had with SBF during his house arrest 
• Tiffany's response to the rumors about a romantic relationship with SBF
• how Tiffany reacted to the DOJ reaching out to her for information before the SBF trial 
• why she decided to go to the courtroom every day during the SBF trial
• Tiffany’s unpleasant encounter with SBF's mom, Barbara Fried
• how Tiffany feels about crypto, and why she doesn’t consider herself a "crypto influencer"
• what Tiffany’s career plans are now that the SBF trial is over

• Arbitrum Foundation
• Popcorn Network
• Phemex

• Tiffany Fong, Crypto content creator

• Unchained: 
• RollingStone: The Crypto Whistleblower at the Center of the Sam Bankman-Fried Storm

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, the gang breaks down the record $4.3 billion settlement between Binance and the U.S. government — whether it was fair, the chances CEO Changpeng Zhao will face any jail time, whether it was ultimately a good thing for Binance and for the U.S., and what this changes for the industry going forward. They also delve into the SEC’s lawsuit against Kraken, and the drama around Sam Altman’s firing from Open AI and what it says about corporate governance and crypto companies. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• the details of the settlement between Binance and the Department of Justice 
• how a core part of Binance’s business model was to allow bad actors on its platform, according to Robert
• why Binance had to settle with the U.S. government even though it's not an American company
• why Tom believes that the settlement represents a "very bad lesson"
• whether U.S. market makers should be liable in cases like these
• how the crypto community has reacted to the settlement 
• what the settlement means for the future of the crypto industry 
• whether the new SEC lawsuit against Kraken is just a “copy-and-paste” of its suit against Coinbase
• The drama around Sam Altman’s removal from his role as CEO of OpenAI
• Why Robert thinks that the OpenAI board was “silly and dumb”
• What the problems at OpenAI say about its innovative governance structure 

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

Binance Settlement

• Unchained: 
• Binance to Pay $4.3 Billion to Settle U.S. DOJ Criminal Probe; CEO Changpeng Zhao Pleads Guilty for Violating Bank Secrecy Act 
• Binance CEO CZ Released on $175 Million Bond

SEC Charges Against Kraken

• Unchained: Crypto Exchange Kraken Accused by SEC of Violating Securities Law

OpenAI

• The Verge: Sam Altman returns as CEO of OpenAI
• Unchained: Worldcoin Falls and Rises After Sam Altman-OpenAI Saga

Haseeb’s tweet on accelerationism

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According to surveys of financial advisors, only 12% are currently recommending that clients invest in Bitcoin, while 47% of advisors personally own Bitcoin and a whopping 77% say they are waiting for a spot Bitcoin ETF to become available so they can offer it to their clients. 

On this episode of Unchained, Ric Edelman, founder of the Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals and author of “The Truth About Crypto,” explains how this should all lead to high demand once the first spot Bitcoin ETFs become available, although it will take some time for them to allocate. Edelman also discusses how FTX’s implosion impacted advisor perceptions of crypto, why investors have not been that excited by crypto futures ETFs, and which Bitcoin ETF issuers he believes are likely to be the big winners.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• how regulatory confusion keeps financial advisors away from recommending Bitcoin to their clients
• how the collapse of FTX affected financial advisors’ interest in crypto, according to Ric
• how the knowledge level of financial advisors about Bitcoin is "extraordinarily low"
• why 77% of investment advisors are willing to buy a spot Bitcoin ETF
• why there wasn't a huge interest from advisors after the launch of Bitcoin futures ETFs
• the percentage of client portfolios that he expects they will allocate to BTC
• why Ric thinks there won't be huge inflows immediately after the approval of spot BTC ETFs
• how financial advisors will decide whose ETF to buy, among the 12 potential issuers
• why he believes spot Ethereum ETFs have great growth potential
• why he thinks tokenization might be the "next big thing" that will increase institutional activity

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• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Ric Edelman, Founder of the Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals
• Previous appearance on Unchained: Financial Advisors Control $5 Trillion in Investor Wealth. Are They Buying Bitcoin?

Previous coverage on spot Bitcoin ETFs:

• How Much Money Will Flow Into Bitcoin ETFs? Here’s One Projection
• Why a Spot Bitcoin ETF Will Probably Launch No Later Than January 10
• Why It Looks Like BlackRock Could Win America’s First Spot Bitcoin ETF
• The Chopping Block: Are We Back? The 'Low IQ' Response to the Potential Spot Bitcoin ETF

• Unchained: 
• BlackRock Files for Spot Ethereum ETF
• The Bitcoin ETF Is a Double-Edged Sword
• Bitcoin ETFs Explained: What Are They & How Do They Work?
• CoinDesk: BlackRock Bitcoin ETF in August Got on DTCC Site That Just Belatedly Moved Markets

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In this episode of Unchained, Peter Van Valkenburgh, director of research at Coin Center, explains why the IRS's proposed broker rule for tax reporting in crypto could harm the crypto industry as well as the security and privacy of users. He explains how Coin Center thinks the IRS should accomplish its aims, and why that would even work for collecting taxes on DeFi gains. 

Additionally, Peter explains why he believes the Bank Secrecy Act might be unconstitutional and how that could potentially affect developers building in crypto. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• What the IRS's proposed broker rule entails for crypto tax reporting and why this could have a negative impact on the industry
• What responsibilities brokers in the crypto space now face
• Why the IRS didn’t use Congress's amended language from the infrastructure bill
• Why Peter argues that the IRS’s new proposed broker rule on crypto is unconstitutional and the principles at stake
• The alternative approaches Peter suggests the IRS could adopt for more effective and fair regulation
• Why Peter has concerns for crypto developers about the potential application of the Bank Secrecy Act
• What actions Coin Center is undertaking to advocate for changes in the Bank Secrecy Act to better align with crypto realities
• Why Coin Center is appealing in its lawsuit against the Treasury Department over the OFAC sanctions on Tornado Cash

• Arbitrum Foundation
• Popcorn Network

• Peter Van Valkenburgh, director of research at Coin Center
• Previous appearances on Unchained: 
• Why the SEC Is Probing Yuga Labs and Coin Center Is Suing Treasury
• How Coin Center Is Helping Define The 'Big Fuzzy Gray Area' Of Blockchain And Cryptocurrency Law
• Why the SEC's Proposed Rules Affecting DeFi Could Violate the First Amendment

IRS Crypto Regulation

• Coin Center: Electronic Cash, Decentralized Exchange, and the Constitution
• The Blockchain Association’s letter opposing tax regulations proposed by the IRS
• CoinDesk: How the Crypto Industry Responded to the IRS Proposed Broker Rule
• Patriot Act 
• California Bankers Assn. v. Shultz

Bank Secrecy Act

• Coin Center:
• Broad, Ambiguous, or Delegated: Constitutional Infirmities of the Bank Secrecy Act

Tornado Cash

• Coin Center:
• U.S. Treasury sanction of privacy tools places sweeping restrictions on all Americans
• Coin Center is suing OFAC over its Tornado Cash sanction
• Denial of Coin Center’s motion in its case against the US Treasury over OFAC sanctions

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The recent Wall Street Journal article that claimed Hamas raised $130 million via cryptocurrency has sparked considerable debate, especially after Sen. Elizabeth Warren used it as her sole source to ask for tighter regulations around crypto. However, the veracity of this claim has come under scrutiny. 

Yaya Fanusie, Jessi Brooks, and Andrew Fierman delve into the veracity of reported figures, the methodology behind them, and the subsequent industry responses that sought to correct the public record. They examine the political implications of cryptocurrency, its use in funding organizations, and the nuanced role of stablecoins in this digital economy. Additionally, they address the broader challenges in regulating crypto to prevent illicit funding, emphasizing the need for factual accuracy and a comprehensive approach to understanding and tackling such complex issues. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• how the Wall Street Journal article claimed that Hamas and other militant groups in Palestine raised $130 million via crypto
• why Yaya, who spent some time in his career doing research on terrorist financing, found those numbers odd
• why Jessi believes that there's been a loss of focus on facts and accuracy
• Andrew's explanation of the post by Chainalysis that corrected the record
• why it's so difficult to make a confident assessment of how much money is being funneled to terrorist groups
• whether crypto has become politicized 
• why is it so important to focus not only on the crypto fundraising but also the other avenues, according to Jessi
• the role of USDT and other stablecoins in fundraising terrorist organizations
• how North Korea is a much more sophisticated actor than Hamas in its know-how about crypto
• how the government has tried to respond to the illicit usage of crypto, such as the OFAC sanctions on Tornado cash
• the challenges to creating regulations to prevent the use of illicit activity in crypto

• Crypto.com
• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Yaya Fanusie, Director of anti-money laundering and cyber risk at the Crypto Council for Innovation
• Previous appearance on Unchained: How Widespread Is Money Laundering in Crypto?
• Hamas has been experimenting with crypto for years: Yaya Fanusie, appearance on FOX Business
• Jessi Brooks, CCO and Legal Officer at Ribbit Capital
• Previous appearance on Unchained: How This DOJ Strike Force Hunts Down Cryptocurrency Criminals
• Andrew Fierman, Head of Sanctions Strategy at Chainalysis 

Fundraising report and corrections:

• WSJ: 
• Hamas Militants Behind Israel Attack Raised Millions in Crypto
• Cryptocurrency Feeds Hamas’s Terrorism
• Questioning Two Senators on Crypto Terrorism
• Washington Post: 
• U.S. to warn crypto firms against financing Hamas, terror groups 
• U.S. Cyber Command helps prosecutors seize stolen cryptocurrency traced to illicit N. Korea nuclear weapons program
• FT: Israel orders freeze on crypto accounts in bid to block funding for Hamas
• Fortune: Stricter verification laws in the U.S. won’t stop international terrorists from using crypto
• DOJ: Global Disruption of Three Terror Finance Cyber-Enabled Campaigns
• Elliptic: 
• Setting the record straight on crypto crowdfunding by Hamas
• How Hamas has utilized crypto, and what may be coming
• Chainalysis: 
• Cryptocurrency and Terrorism Financing: Correcting the Record
• DOJ Takedowns Terrorism Financing with Blockchain Analysis

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, the gang welcomes Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who discusses his mission to end the U.S. government’s regulatory overreach of the crypto industry, the parallels between crypto and the biotech industry where he came from, whether “code is law” is an appropriate framework for crypto regulation, how Bitcoin could be a check on the Fed, and how less regulation would actually lead to fewer, not more, instances of fraud like FTX.  

Ramaswamy is promising to release a comprehensive crypto policy plan this week. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• what Vivek thinks about crypto and why he is interested in this topic as a presidential candidate
• why he believes the SEC is engaging in “unconstitutional overreach” when it comes to crypto
• what the similarities are between early-stage biotech and early-stage crypto investing
• whether current regulatory requirements create a "false blanket of security"
• how Vivek would act to make sure the SEC doesn't overreach
• how the system should respond to less regulation in terms of fraud and innovation
• how stablecoins can reinforce the value of the dollar and Bitcoin can help discipline the Fed, according to Vivek
• whether Bitcoin is an asset that the Fed should buy for its balance sheet
• why Vivek believes it was a mistake to abandon the gold standard in the 1970s
• the gang's debrief of the conversation: what stood out, where they agree or disagree with Vivek
• their reaction to the conviction of Sam Bankman-Fried

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

• Vivek Ramaswamy, American entrepreneur and U.S. presidential candidate

• Fox Business: Ramaswamy woos pro-crypto voters, says he’ll build new policy framework for digital assets
• Axios: Ramaswamy goes after regulators at crypto event
• CoinDesk: Vivek Ramaswamy Is Drafting a 'Crypto Policy Framework'
• WSJ: Stablecoins Can Keep the Dollar the World’s Reserve Currency
• Decrypt: What Stops the Fed From Buying Up Bitcoin?
• Forbes: What Happened In 1971?
• Unchained: SBF Trial, Day 18: Sam Bankman-Fried Found Guilty on All 7 Counts in Swift Verdict

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Last week, OpenSea, the former frontrunner in the NFT marketplace, confirmed the layoff of half its workforce as the NFT markets seemed to bottom out. 

gmoney, NFT collector and founder of 9dcc, joins Unchained to provide insight into the once-dominant NFT marketplace’s fall from grace. He talks about the competitive dynamics that challenge the platform's market share and whether a token launch could help. In addition, gmoney delves into why the NFT market has been “abysmal,” what could potentially catalyze its revival, and how he thinks creator royalties will evolve. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• whether OpenSea 'rested on their laurels' after becoming the market leader
• whether the fact that its competitor Blur launched a token was a reason for OpenSea's fall
• whether OpenSea not immediately following other platforms such as Blur in making creator royalties optional led to some of its decline
• how gmoney wants to incentivize people to pay creator royalties 
• why the NFT market has gone down and what gmoney's thesis for NFTs is
• what catalysts could cause the next NFT bull run, according to gmoney
• how NFTs make it possible for certain groups to access new forms of credit 
• whether Ethereum can be displaced from its leadership position in the NFT market
• what gmoney thinks could revive OpenSea’s prospects
• Whether Blur's model is to blame for the decline in the NFT market
• how gmoney thinks Blur should act to retain its market dominance

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• Phemex
• Popcorn Network

• gmoney, NFT collector and founder of 9dcc

• Previous episodes of Unchained and The Chopping Block debating NFT Royalties:
• The Chopping Block: Did Blur Cause a Decline in the NFT Market?
• The Chopping Block: Two on Two Debate: NFT Royalty Throwdown!
• Are NFT Royalties the Way? How to Build a Sustainable Creator Economy
• Decrypt: 
• Did Blur Really Crash the NFT Market?
• OpenSea’s move to make creator royalties optional for NFT trades
• Blur Overtakes OpenSea as Ethereum NFT Trading Skyrockets
• The Crypto Times: Blur Jumps Nearly 30% Within Days While OpenSea Layoffs
• Cointelegraph: OpenSea lays off 50% of staff with severance in preparation for version 2.0 launch
• CoinDesk: NFT Lending Platform Blend Sparks Concerns Over Ecosystem Liquidity
• The Information: Coatue Cuts Value of OpenSea Stake by 90% as Fund’s Returns Sag
• Axios: The fight over a shrinking NFT market as marketplaces foresee next big boom 

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, they explore the enigmatic 'unhinged scale' metric, consider whether recent layoffs could have been anticipated, and examine the challenges facing the NFT market. They also provide a somewhat critical look at the events of the recent BAYC Apefest and share their takeaways on how Solana survived the Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX fiasco. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• What the unhinged scale metric is and why SBF ranks the highest in that metric
• Whether the companies doing layoffs could have predicted the market moves in a better way
• Whether people and the press are being too harsh on the companies reducing their workforce
• How the NFT market is a much harder environment than everything else, given the extreme volatility
• Whether the model used by Blur caused the value of NFTs to go down
• What’s more important in the NFT market: the supply or the demand
• The BAYC ‘Apefest’ that caused eye damage to some participants and whether someone sabotaged the meetup
• Tarun’s takeaways from the recent Solana conference in Amsterdam
• Whether the people who survived the Solana market crash are like ‘cockroaches after a explosion’
• Why Haseeb believes that Solana represents the most incredible story in the history of Layer 1s
• Whether crypto gaming studios should focus on building ‘dumber’ games rather than AAA ones
• Why “nature is a Ponzi scheme,” according to Tarun

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

• Previous episodes of Unchained and The Chopping Block debating NFT Royalties:
• The Chopping Block: Two on Two Debate: NFT Royalty Throwdown!
• Are NFT Royalties the Way? How to Build a Sustainable Creator Economy
• Decrypt: 
• Ava Labs Confirms Layoffs, Affecting 12% of Avalanche Studio's Employees
• Did Blur Really Crash the NFT Market?
• Cryptotimes.io: Blur Jumps Nearly 30% Within Days While OpenSea Layoffs
• Cointelegraph: OpenSea lays off 50% of staff with severance in preparation for version 2.0 launch

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In this episode of Unchained, Laura does a detailed unpacking of the historic Sam Bankman-Fried trial and verdict with defense lawyer Sam Enzer and former Southern District of New York prosecutor Rich Cooper. They discuss what a thorough job the government did in presenting its case, whether the government will pursue a second trial on campaign finance charges, why it takes so long for sentencing to occur, what the differences between this case and the Bernie Madoff case are, and what Bankman-Fried’s likely sentence will be. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• how the cross-examination of SBF showed to the jury that he was unreliable, according to Rich
• why the charge conference with the jury is important to the prosecution for “protecting the record”
• why the closing argument of the prosecutors was so effective 
• what “conscious avoidance” is and how the prosecutors tried to prove that SBF was guilty of that
• why SBF’s tweet last November that "FTX is fine" was the hardest part of the trial for the defense, according to Enzer
• why Enzer wasn’t surprised by how quickly the jury made its decision 
• what SBF’s strongest argument is for an appeal
• why Enzer "hopes" that there won't be a second trial against SBF and whether he will plead guilty to the additional charges
• why the sentencing occurs so many months after the verdict
• how this case is similar, but also different, from the Bernie Madoff case
• how many years SBF could spend in prison, according to Enzer and Cooper
• when cooperating witnesses such as Caroline Ellison, Nishad Singh, and Gary Wang are likely to get sentenced

• Crypto.com
• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel.
• Previous appearances on Unchained: 
• Why SBF's Testimony So Far Has Likely Already Doomed Him
• Another Bad Week for Sam Bankman-Fried in His Criminal Trial
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• SBF’s Lawyers Could Be Annoying the Judge. How Might That Impact the Trial?
• Rich Cooper, Former SDNY prosecutor

• Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• How Heated Sidebars During the SBF Trial Could Impact the Jury’s Decision
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?

Visit www.unchainedcrypto.com for more!

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Two Genesis creditors, BJ and Branden, who prefer to use pseudonyms for security reasons, spoke with Unchained about the alleged fraud by the crypto lender and its parent company, Digital Currency Group (DCG). The discussion is one of the first times Genesis creditors have spoken with a media organization about the situation.

BJ and Branden explain how they gave more loans to Genesis after it took a $1.1 billion hit from the liquidation of Three Arrows Capital and how they then came to be members of the ad hoc group, a collective of Genesis customers who came together to try and save the company from bankruptcy.

They talk about how they now want DCG to pay back the $1.1 billion it owes over a shorter timeframe and to pay back any Bitcoin in actual Bitcoin. The discussion with Unchained followed shortly after New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Genesis, along with its parent company Digital Currency Group, and Gemini Trust.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• what NYAG Letitia James alleged in the lawsuit against Gemini, DCG, and Genesis
• how BJ and Branden became creditors of Genesis, including the role of the influence of MicroStrategy's Michael Saylor
• how Genesis claimed it got into what it called a “liquidity mismatch”
• how, after the Three Arrows Capital collapse, BJ and Branden were reassured that Genesis had "no issues" and "was back to business"
• whether the trading and lending units of Genesis were all part of the same company and why that distinction is important
• what the difference is between the ad hoc group and an unsecured creditors committee
• what the creditors are proposing in order to get their assets back
• why the creditors want to be paid in crypto, not in USD
• whether the case will go to litigation and what Silbert can do to avoid it

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• Phemex
• Popcorn Network

• Branden, Creditor of Genesis
• BJ, Creditor of Genesis

Previous coverage of Unchained on Genesis and DCG:

• ​​Genesis May Be Facing Bankruptcy. Could It Take DCG Down With It?
• Gemini vs. DCG Is Heating Up. Could Gemini Force Genesis Into Bankruptcy?
• $630M Due Next Week: Is DCG at Default Risk?

NYAG Lawsuit

• Unchained: NY Attorney General Sues Crypto Firms Gemini, Genesis, and DCG for Over $1 Billion Fraud
• The Block: DCG says it was 'blind sided' by NYAG suit in third quarter shareholder letter

Genesis, Gemini, DCG disputes

• Unchained:
• Gemini Says DCG Missed $630 Million Payment Last Week
• Cameron Winklevoss Threatens to Sue DCG and Barry Silbert Over Delays in Genesis Resolution
• DCG Calls Gemini Lawsuit a ‘Publicity Stunt’ From Cameron Winklevoss
• DCG Calls Gemini’s Complaint a PR Campaign in Motion to Dismiss Lawsuit
• FTX and Genesis Reach $175 Million Settlement, Resolving Complex Dispute
• DCG and Genesis Reach In-Principle Deal With Creditors
• Gemini and Genesis Creditor Groups Object to In-Principle Deal to Resolve Bankruptcy
• Genesis Winds Down its US Spot Crypto Trading Operation
• Genesis Sues Parent Company DCG, Seeks Repayment of $600 Million
• DCG Proposes Remuneration Plan That Could Enable Gemini Earn Users to Be Made Whole
• Genesis Winds Down All Crypto Trading Services: Report
• Gemini Pushes Back on DCG’s Remuneration Proposal, Calling it an ‘Attempt to Bait’ Earn Users

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The downfall of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried from king of the crypto world to crypto scammer is complete.

A Manhattan jury of nine women and three men took less than five hours Thursday afternoon, day 18 of the high-profile trial, to convict Bankman-Fried on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy for stealing billions of dollars of his customers’ assets. 

“Sam Bankman-Fried perpetrated one of the biggest financial frauds in American history, a multi-million scheme designed to make him the king of crypto,” said Damian Williams, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York in remarks following the verdict.

The guilty verdict came a year to the day after crypto publication CoinDesk published a story showing balance sheet irregularities at Bankman-Fried’s investment company, Alameda Research, that suggested the ties between Alameda and FTX were unusually close. Bankman-Fried now faces potentially decades in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for March 28.

After listening to Judge Lewis Kaplan read through 60 pages of instructions, jurors quickly concluded that Bankman-Fried was responsible for decisions that led to an $8 billion hole in its balance sheet, including the use of customer assets for political donations, investments and his own personal use. Prosecutors had reiterated this theme in a stinging, Thursday morning rebuttal. 

And jurors rejected whole-hog Bankman-Fried’s defense team’s narrative that Bankman-Fried was being villainized for being a poor manager who didn’t create sufficient risk management systems. They also did not buy into Bankman-Fried’s claim that he was unaware of the severity of his company’s financial problems and that his inner circle, three of whom testified earlier in the trial as part of plea agreements, were to blame. 

“We respect the jury’s decision,” said Bankman-Fried’s lead attorney, Mark Cohen. But we are very disappointed with the result. Mr. Bankman-Fried maintains his innocence and will continue to fight the charges against him.”

U.S. attorney Wiliams called Bankman-Fried’s crimes “ fraud” as “old as time,” and said his office had “no patience for it.” 

He added: “This case moved at lightning speed, that was a choice, not a coincidence.”

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• SBF Trial, Day 12: Former FTX General Counsel Speaks Out Against SBF
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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Prosecutors and defense attorneys in the trial of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried closed their arguments with similar stories to their opening statements more than three weeks ago: a tale of two Sams.

On Wednesday morning, day 17 of the trial, the government took jurors on a final grand tour of Bankman-Fried’s alleged lies, evasions and misdirections that they said aimed to hide the ugly truth of a gaping $8 billion hole in the crypto exchange’s balance sheet from investors and regulators, and that reflected his indifference to spending customer assets. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Roos said that as the person overseeing FTX and the separate trading entity, Alameda Research, to which FTX funneled customer deposits, Bankman-Fried was the only person who could have been responsible for decisions that led to the deficit – criminally so.

“He told a story and he lied to you,” said Roos, who punctuated his more than two-hour presentation with metadata readings and time tables that seemed to devastatingly illustrate SBF’s ongoing awareness of his company’s financial debacle.

But in the afternoon, Bankman-Fried’s defense team portrayed him in softer tones, as a math nerd with no ill-intent and guilty only of bad management, particularly his failure to install adequate risk management protections. Attorney Mark Cohen said that the government had failed to prove its case as it sought to create a Hollywood villain responsible for the disappearance of the funds, cartooning his dress and personal habits to make their case. At one point, he seemed to appeal to jurors’ emotions, reminding them that Bankman-Fried had lived a big life and now faces prison.

Bankman-Fried faces potentially decades in prison on a total of seven counts of wire fraud and conspiracy. The prosecution will have an opportunity for rebuttal on Thursday, and jurors could begin deliberating his fate before the end of the day.. 

Often raising his voice for dramatic effect, Roos highlighted earlier testimony from Bankman-Fried’s inner circle and Google metadata indicating his awareness of the balance sheet woes to show his involvement in the company’s oversight. Bankman-Fried testified on Monday that he was unaware of the problems, suggesting others were to blame. 

And Roos used the time tables to demonstrate separately that Bankman-Fried had lied to Congress about protecting customer assets even as he paid off loans using them, and that he had spent heavily on investments, political contributions and personal items, even after he knew of the massive balance sheet hole. 

“This was a pyramid of deceit built by the defendant on a foundation of lies and false promises, all to get money, and eventually it collapsed, leaving countless victims in its wake,” Roos thundered.

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, the gang sits down with guest Nic Carter of Castle Island Ventures, whose tweet thread pushed the Wall Street Journal to correct its story that Hamas had raised tens of millions in crypto. Carter discusses the challenges in tracking how much crypto Hamas has actually received, the declining prospects for Sam Bankman-Fried’s acquittal, and ongoing dramas surrounding staking protocol Lido and decentralized exchange dYdX.  

Show highlights: 

• Why the cross-examination has not gone well for Sam Bankman-Fried
• how the Wall Street Journal misinterpreted data and may have overstated the amount of crypto donations flowing to Hamas for terrorist activities 
• why it’s difficult to pinpoint how much funding Hamas has raised in crypto donations
• how extensive crypto funding for terrorists is believable to many outside observers of the industry, even recently some of its supporters in Congress, but does not reflect reality
• Why Hamas has decided on its own to stop trying to raise funds in crypto
• how Lido is upset at the way Layer Zero has pre-marketed its bridge
• why dYdX’s pivot to decentralization with fees going into its token is a positive development but does not give the protocol the moral high ground to attack erstwhile competitors such as UniSwap.

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly

• Nic Carter, general partner at Castle Island Ventures

Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:

• How Heated Sidebars During the SBF Trial Could Impact the Jury’s Decision
• Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges 
• Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• Day 12: Former FTX General Counsel Speaks Out Against SBF
• Day 13: Before Judge, Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Gives Few Straight Answers
• Day 14: Sam Bankman-Fried Casts Blame on Others for Key Decisions at FTX
• Day 15: Prosecutors Hammer Bankman-Fried’s Contradictions With Reams of Evidence
• Day 16: In Final Cross Examination, SBF Gets Caught Again by His Own Words

Hamas

• Unchained: Binance Helps Israel Police Freeze Hamas Crypto Accounts: Report
• Unchained: Bitcoin Slips to $27.4K Amid Escalating Israel-Hamas War but Long-Range Impact Remains Uncertain
• Nic Carter Twitter thread: Can crypto-twitter OSINT outperform the WSJ’s chain analysis?
• Nic Carter Tweet: Liz Warren wyd?
• The Wall Street Journal: The Wall Street Journal and Liz Warren double down on the Hamas crypto canard
• Washington Post: U.S. to warn crypto firms against financing Hamas, terror groups
• CoinDesk: The Hamas Funding Story Is Why Crypto Is Sick of the Mainstream Media

Layer Zero/Lido

• LayerZero’s wstETH bridge deployment draws Lido DAO ire
• LayerZero introduces omnichain token to move Lido's wstETH across Avalanche, BNB Chain and Scroll

dYdX

• Examining dYdX’s Path to Profitable DeFi

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For a second, consecutive day, prosecutors pounded away at Sam Bankman-Fried’s credibility, asking the former FTX CEO to explain his obliviousness about how Alameda had spent $8 billion of FTX customer funds.

Prosecutors and the defense both rested their cases on Day 16 of the high-profile trial. Both sides will make their closing arguments on Wednesday and jurors could begin deliberating the following day. 

While Bankman-Fried claimed that he thought “it was permissible” for Alameda to use FTX customers’ fiat deposits, he also admitted that he didn’t tell his employees not to spend that money or create measures to segregate FTX customer funds from Alameda’s.

Prosecutor Danielle Sassoon also grilled him on why he didn’t look into who had spent the FTX customer money. “So it’s your testimony that while you were CEO of Alameda some unknown people spent $8 billion without your knowledge?” prosecutor Danielle Sassoon asked Bankman-Fried, who replied that he didn’t agree that was his testimony.

Bankman-Fried later said that he had asked former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison to explain the $8 billion in spending but did not fire anyone. Under subsequent defense questioning, Bankman-Fried said that he had wanted to look ahead.

Earlier in the day, Sassoon had honed in on Bankman-Fried’s allegedly close relationship with government officials in the Bahamas, and presented an email in which he said that the company had “segregated funds for all Bahamian customers on FTX and that it would be “more than happy to open up withdrawals for all Bahamian customers on FTX.” The communication came Nov. 9, 2022, a few days after FTX had halted customer withdrawals as awareness of its financial problems grew. 

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• SBF Trial, Day 12: Former FTX General Counsel Speaks Out Against SBF
• SBF Trial, Day 14: Sam Bankman-Fried Casts Blame on Others for Key Decisions at FTX
• SBF Trial, Day 15: Prosecutors Hammer Bankman-Fried’s Contradictions With Reams of Evidence
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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In a trial during which he has suffered many low points, former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried may have reached a nadir on day 15 as prosecutor Danielle Sassoon used his own words to show stark contradictions from his earlier testimony and a seemingly callous disregard for customer assets.

The tenacious, methodical Sassoon punctuated her more than four hours of interrogation on Monday afternoon with devastating audio and visual evidence of Bankman-Fried, including memos to himself, internal FTX and Alameda documents, and testimony to Congress that countered statements he’d made under his defense team team’s kinder questioning. In one instance, Sassoon showed a Signal chat in which Bankman-Fried expressed his interest in purchasing MAPs token, a direct refutation of his testifying that he “was not involved at all in any way” in trading. 

In another instance, she illustrated Bankman-Fried’s alleged lack of regard for his Twitter followers, showing a screenshot of a Twitter DM with Kelsy Piper in which he admits to being insincere about his support for regulation that protects customers, telling Piper at one point, “just PR, fuck regulators.”

Bankman-Fried claimed not to remember a spreadsheet with seven, different balance sheets created by then Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison to make the company’s balance sheet look better than it was, a key piece of evidence that Ellison addressed in her testimony. Sassoon presented Google metadata showing Bankman-Fried had read the document. 

Dressed in a light gray suit with a purple tie, Bankman-Fried claimed repeatedly not to remember other events or his responses in conversations, and he answered other questions with curt yeses and nos, unlike the windy, often convoluted responses that he provided to his defense team earlier in the day and on Monday. And as Sassoon continued to catch him in contradictions, he seemed to grow irritable and occasionally rocked back and forth in his chair. 

Prosecutors will continue their cross-examination on Tuesday followed by redirect for one or two hours before the defense closes its case. The prosecution will then call two rebuttal witnesses.

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• SBF Trial, Day 12: Former FTX General Counsel Speaks Out Against SBF
• SBF Trial, Day 13: Before Judge, Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Gives Few Straight Answers
• SBF Trial, Day 14: Sam Bankman-Fried Casts Blame on Others for Key Decisions at FTX
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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Sam Enzer, a partner at the law firm Cahill Gordon & Reindel, told Laura that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried did about as well as he could in his testimony Friday but that he was unlikely “to withstand the scrutiny” of what prosecutors have already said will be a robust cross-examination when he takes the stand Monday. 

Enzer noted that Bankman-Fried’s attempts to explain why he thought his trading shop, Alameda Research, could borrow billions in dollars of FTX customer assets “defies common sense,” and that the company’s own terms of agreement or any other communications offered no justification for this belief. A Thursday hearing without the jury present, in which the defense gave a preview of some arguments it wanted to make, ended up giving the government answers from SBF that it can now use against him. Enzer also said that Bankman-Fried’s contention that his biggest mistake – a failure to implement proper risk management – did not constitute criminal fraud, did not address the core of the government’s case; namely, that he lied about how FTX was handling customer deposits.

• why Enzer thinks Sam Bankman-Fried’s testimony is unlikely to sway jury sentiment or withstand cross-examination
• why the evidentiary hearing in which SBF testified without a jury may hurt his cause
• the purpose of the evidentiary hearing
• how Judge Lewis Kaplan hinted at what he thought about SBF’s testimony
• how Bankman-Fried is likely to fare against prosecutor Danielle Sassoon in what she has promised will be a robust cross-examination
• how the defense tried to recast SBF’s image by humanizing him
• why the defense now has the strongest grounds for an appeal than it previously did 
• what the jury is likely to make of SBF’s contention that he was in the dark about core allegations 
• why the prosecution said it will call rebuttal witnesses
• what a charge conference is and why that will take place after SBF testifies

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel

• Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• How Heated Sidebars During the SBF Trial Could Impact the Jury’s Decision
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges 
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• SBF Trial, Day 12: Former FTX General Counsel Speaks Out Against SBF
• SBF Trial, Day 13: Before Judge, Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Gives Few Straight Answers
• SBF Trial, Day 14: Sam Bankman-Fried Casts Blame on Others for Key Decisions at FTX
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Good Morning America: FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried on crypto giant's collapse: 'A lot of people got hurt. And that's on me'

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Sam Bankman-Fried took the stand before a jury for the first time in his criminal trial for allegedly defrauding FTX customers. The exchange’s co-founder and former CEO tried to recast the image that prosecutors spent nearly three weeks shaping of an executive who defrauded customers and dismissed the concerns of the three members of his inner circle, all of whom named him as their co-conspirator earlier in the trial.  

Responding to his defense team’s gentle questioning, SBF spent large parts of his testimony, offering alternative, often long-winded explanations for actions and behavior that prosecutors allege demonstrated intent to evade legal and regulatory scrutiny of the business he created. He admitted to making mistakes, which supported his defense team’s “failed entrepreneur” strategy, and none more significant than a failure to create a dedicated risk management team. 

Bankman-Fried denied committing any crimes or attempting to defraud anyone and said that he believed funds used for sponsorships, real estate purchases, political donations, venture investments and payments to lenders did not come from customer funds. At times, he attempted to shift blame for certain decisions on the inner circle, who he insisted had the authority to take action “on behalf of the company without consulting” him. 

SBF described former CEO of Alameda Research, Caroline Ellison, his on-and-off girlfriend, as a good trader and researcher who did not act on his stated concerns about the FTX trading arm’s exposure to market risk and importance of hedging. Ellison, who agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors, testified early in the trial that Bankman-Fried had asked her to manipulate Alameda balance sheets at Bankman-Fried’s direction to make them seem less risky to lenders and that Alameda had used FTX customer funds for its own investments. Prosecutors have promised a robust cross-examination next week. Whether they or Bankman-Fried’s version of events is more persuasive for jurors remains uncertain. 

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• SBF Trial, Day 12: Former FTX General Counsel Speaks Out Against SBF
• SBF Trial, Day 13: Before Judge, Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Gives Few Straight Answers
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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In a recent report, Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy, predicted that inflows to spot bitcoin ETFs would rise above $14 billion in the first year following the potential approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission of multiple applications the agency is considering. Thorn called the availability of this product significant because it will give financial advisors and wealth managers accessibility to digital assets in a way that will be acceptable to clients seeking exposure to crypto. He also believes approval of a spot BTC ETF could occur this year before the holidays, and draws comparisons between bitcoin and gold as investment products. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• why Alex believes this is a significant moment for Bitcoin
• how, in Bitcoin, retail had access to this asset before institutions
• why Alex expects the spot Bitcoin ETF approved this year
• what the capital inflows Galaxy expects to be in the first years and how they arrived at those numbers 
• whether the addressable market will increase significantly for Bitcoin
• what will be the average percentage of assets adding BTC exposure
• why Alex compares Bitcoin to gold, and what he learned after comparing both types of assets
• how much the price of Bitcoin will increase after the first year of the ETF approval, according to Galaxy's report
• how the several spot Bitcoin ETFs will be differentiated 

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• Popcorn Network

• Alex Thorn, head of firmwide research at Galaxy

• Previous coverage of Unchained on spot Bitcoin ETFs:
• Why a Spot Bitcoin ETF Will Probably Launch No Later Than January 10
• Why It Looks Like BlackRock Could Win America’s First Spot Bitcoin ETF
• The Chopping Block: Are We Back? The 'Low IQ' Response to the Potential Spot Bitcoin ETF
• Unchained: 
• Bitcoin Soars Past $35,000 Amid Spot ETF Optimism
• Bitcoin ETFs Explained: What Are They & How Do They Work?
• CoinDesk: BlackRock Bitcoin ETF in August Got on DTCC Site That Just Belatedly Moved Markets
• 12 spot bitcoin ETFs in consideration by the SEC
• Galaxy: Sizing the Market for a Bitcoin ETF
• Alex’s thread drawing out highlights from the report
• Alex’s thread on the potential for a “gamma squeeze”
• CoinShares Digital Asset Funds Flow Weekly

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In a courtroom drama minus the jury, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) took the stand for what can be best described as a “test run.” The hearing aimed to help the judge decide what evidence will be admissible in the actual trial. SBF's performance under Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon's questioning was less than stellar. His verbose answers and frequent apologies contrasted sharply with Sassoon's pointed questions, at times making him appear evasive. The hearing also touched on SBF's use of encrypted messaging app Signal and his company's data retention policy.

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• SBF Trial, Day 12: Former FTX General Counsel Speaks Out Against SBF
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, the four discuss Bitcoin’s price surge over the past week amid growing optimism that a spot BTC exchange traded fund would win regulatory approval, an erroneous Wall Street Journal story about crypto funding to the terrorist group Hamas and AI and crypto illiteracy among leading U.S. lawmakers. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• the reasons why the price of Bitcoin has gone up so much in the last week
• whether Bitcoin is decoupling from the traditional stock and equity markets 
• why Robert is convinced that Bitcoin pumped this much due to the BlackRock ETF news
• what an ETF is and why it could be a big deal for Bitcoin
• whether the analogy to the gold ETFs works for Bitcoin
• how an inaccurate report from the Wall Street Journal about Hamas' usage of crypto sparked so much criticism within the crypto community
• why that crypto is not a good venue for illicit financing
• how the US political class is 'illiterate' about AI and crypto, according to Tarun

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

Recent coverage of Unchained on spot Bitcoin ETFs:

• Why a Spot Bitcoin ETF Will Probably Launch No Later Than January 10
• Why It Looks Like BlackRock Could Win America’s First Spot Bitcoin ETF

Bitcoin ETFs

• Unchained: 
• Bitcoin Soars Past $35,000 Amid Spot ETF Optimism
• Bitcoin ETFs Explained: What Are They & How Do They Work?
• South China Morning Post: China’s stock market fund outflows add to biggest capital flight since 2016: Goldman

Regulation:

• Reuters: US lawmakers urge White House crack down on Hamas use of crypto after Israel attack
• Forbes: Elizabeth Warren Is Building An ‘Anti-Crypto Army’—Feeding Serious U.S. Bitcoin Ban Warnings
• WSJ: Hamas Militants Behind Israel Attack Raised Millions in Crypto
• Cryptoslate: Crypto community accuses WSJ of exaggerating Hamas crypto funding by 99%

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James Seyffart, market analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, and Matt Hougan, chief investment officer at Bitwise Asset Management, feel quite certain a spot Bitcoin ETF will launch in the next few months. 

First, the SEC decided not to appeal a court’s rejection of Grayscale’s application to convert its bitcoin trust to a spot ETF. Second, there’s been a change in the way the SEC has been treating the many other spot Bitcoin ETF applications—requesting miniscule tweaks in disclosure language. And even though other legal hiccups are occurring—the NY Attorney General’s lawsuit against Grayscale parent company, DCG, the SEC’s potentially renewed vigor in the Ripple case, and Cointelegraph’s incorrect tweet about a bitcoin ETF—the SEC needs a PR win right now. According to them, this means good things not just for spot Bitcoin ETFs but also, shortly thereafter, Ethereum ETFs. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• why the SEC did not appeal a decision in the Grayscale case
• whether the NYAG lawsuit against DGC, the parent company of Grayscale, will affect the prospects for GBTC being converted into an ETF
• how likely it is that GBTC will be converted into an ETF and what needs to happen for that to occur
• why the SEC probably wants Grayscale to "completely refile," according to James
• why the recent changes in the ETF applications are "relatively modest," according to Matt
• whether the incorrect Cointelegraph tweet about a spot bitcoin ETF will be used by the SEC to bolster its market manipulation argument
• an overview of the deadlines of the different applications
• what happened at the launch of Ethereum futures ETFs and how it was different from the launch of Bitcoin futures ETFs
• whether the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF will pave the way for a spot ether ETF
• what the impact is of all the negative PR for the SEC and Chair Gary Gensler after losing many cases
• what the differences between the various ETFs are and how they will compete in the market
• Lightning round questions: volumes after launch, inflows in the first year, projections for BTC price

• Crypto.com
• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• James Seyffart, Research analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence
• Previous appearance on Unchained: Why It Looks Like BlackRock Could Win America’s First Spot Bitcoin ETF
• Matthew Hougan, CIO of Bitwise
• Previous appearances on Unchained: 
• The 2 Types of Investors Driving Interest in Crypto
• Bitwise’s Latest Plans to Get a Bitcoin ETF Approved

ETFs:

• Does Grayscale’s Win Against the SEC Mean a Spot Bitcoin ETF Will Be Approved?
• Grayscale v. SEC: Who Won This Week’s Hearing?
• Why Grayscale Is Suing the SEC Over Its Denial of a Bitcoin ETF
• $5 Billion in AUM: Why Growth at Grayscale Exploded in the Last Quarter
• Bitwise’s Latest Plans to Get a Bitcoin ETF Approved
• DCG’s Dilemma: Should It Sell Its GBTC Holdings to Repay Gemini?
• Unchained: 
• Bitcoin Surges to $30K After False Spot ETF Approval Tweet
• Ethereum Futures ETFs See ‘Average’ First Day Trading Volumes
• Cointelegraph: Clarification on sharing false spot Bitcoin ETF news
• Redeem GBTC 🌽 Campaign

Ripple:

SEC Drops Charges Against Ripple CEO and Chairman - Unchained Crypto

Market manipulation

• CNET: 23-year-old arrested in Emulex hoax
• SEC Charges Avraham Eisenberg with Manipulating Mango Markets’ “Governance Token” to Steal $116 Million of Crypto Assets

NYAG lawsuit:

• NY Attorney General Sues Crypto Firms Gemini, Genesis, and DCG for Over $1 Billion Fraud

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, the four discuss – and disagree about – Uniswap’s new fees, SBF trial week 3, and DCG potentially being taken out by the NY Attorney General. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• What happened recently on the criminal trial against Sam Bankman-Fried, including testimonies from Caroline Ellison, Nishad Singh
• why Robert doesn't like the cartoonist and how Tarun is friends with a stenographer 
• how Nishad Singh confirmed what everyone suspected about the cross-collateral risk engine at FTX
• why Haseeb believes that the NYAG's lawsuit against DCG, Genesis, and Gemini is "brutal"
• how DCG resembles the Roman Empire, according to Haseeb
• what Robert thinks about the introduction of the Uniswap Labs new fees, considering he was in a similar situation with Compound Labs'
• how can companies that build open-source protocols monetize their efforts
• whether the implementation of the fees will reduce the total volume for Uniswap

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:

• How Heated Sidebars During the SBF Trial Could Impact the Jury’s Decision
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges 
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole

Uniswap:

• Unchained: Uniswap Labs to Charge 0.15% Fee on Certain Tokens

NYAG lawsuit: 

• Unchained: NY Attorney General Sues Crypto Firms Gemini, Genesis, and DCG for Over $1 Billion Fraud

Reddit:

• Unchained: Reddit to Discontinue Community Points Citing Scalability and Regulatory Issues, Sparking Community Backlash

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Sam Enzer, a partner at the law firm Cahill Gordon & Reindel, told Laura that compelling evidence from Sam Bankman-Fried’s inner circle had increased the difficulty for the fallen FTX CEO to convince a jury of his innocence. Former FTX head engineer Nishad Singh said that he became suicidal after understanding the full magnitude of FTX’s misuse of customer funds, while ex-chief legal counsel Can Sun helped show how SBF allegedly lied to lawyers. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• Sam (Enzer’s) thoughts on how the trial is going for the defense 
• what Nishad Singh's emotional testimony revealed about SBF
• how Singh felt "betrayed" by Bankman-Fried, who may have been a big brother figure to him
• why the defense went much harder after Singh in its defense than it did the other members of the inner circle
• whether the jury felt empathy with Singh about his suicidal feelings 
• what the rationale was behind the order of the witnesses
• why Sam believes that the accounting professor Peter Easton's testimony was "damning" for the defense 
• whether the testimony of former FTX general counsel proved that SBF lied to his own lawyers
• why the communications between SBF and his lawyer, which are generally privileged, were divulged in court
• why Sam believes that it's likely that SBF will testify, although he would advise him not to

• Crypto.com
• Hedera
• Popcorn Network

• Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel.
• Previous appearances on Unchained: 
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• SBF’s Lawyers Could Be Annoying the Judge. How Might That Impact the Trial?

• Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• How Heated Sidebars During the SBF Trial Could Impact the Jury’s Decision
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges 
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Good Morning America: FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried on crypto giant's collapse: 'A lot of people got hurt. And that's on me'

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On the 12th day of the SBF Trial, former FTX General Counsel Can Sun testified about a $7 billion deficit in customer funds. Sun, who was responsible for crafting FTX's terms of service, expressed shock at the deficit and revealed that Sam Bankman-Fried had asked him for legal justifications. Sun also mentioned that Nishad Singh, a key witness and former head of engineering at FTX, looked emotionally drained days before the company's collapse.

Sun's testimony took a dramatic turn during a meeting with Bankman-Fried and others, where it was confirmed that FTX lacked sufficient funds to cover customer withdrawals. This meeting solidified Sun's suspicions that Alameda Research had misappropriated FTX customer deposits. 

The day concluded with Robert Boroujerdi of Third Point stating that Bankman-Fried had omitted significant details that would have altered the firm’s decision to invest $60 million in the now failed crypto exchange. That investment is now worth zero. The trial will resume in a week, adding more suspense to this unfolding legal drama.

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• SBF Trial, Day 11: How Alameda Got FTX Into a $9 Billion Hole
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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The courtroom was abuzz on Wednesday as financial and technical experts took the stand in the ongoing criminal trial against Sam Bankman-Fried. Accounting professor Peter Easton, a standout witness, presented a detailed analysis showing that Alameda had spent customer funds on VC investments, real estate, and political and charitable donations. Easton, who had previously worked on high-profile cases like Enron and Worldcom, said that by the end, the gap between what FTX owed to customers and what it had on hand was $8.8 billion.

The defense, led by attorney David Lisner, attempted to challenge Easton's methods. Lisner questioned the accounting of the fiat@ftx internal account, which tracks customer deposits. Easton admitted to lumping amounts owed to customers from FTX’s bank accounts with what was owed to customers from Alameda's bank accounts, giving the defense an opportunity to question his accuracy.

The day also saw other witnesses, including a former FTX lobbyist and a Google employee, both of whose relevance was questioned by Judge Kaplan. The judge criticized the prosecution for wasting time with witnesses who seemed to offer little to the case.

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• SBF Trial, Day 10: Defense Struggles to Discredit Nishad Singh's Testimony
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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On day 10 of the Sam Bankman-Fried trial, SBF’s defense team tried to discredit Nishad Singh, a key witness for the prosecution. Despite their efforts, Singh's testimony about FTX's financial mismanagement and Bankman-Fried's questionable ethics remained largely unchallenged. The defense's line of questioning focused on Singh's memory and inconsistencies in his statements, but prosecutors were quick to counter these points in their redirect.

FBI Agent Richard Busick presented an analysis of Bankman-Fried's phone locations, revealing his connections to influential political figures like former U.S. President Bill Clinton and New York City Mayor Eric Adams. 

Can this information impact the jury's perception of Bankman-Fried as the trial continues to unfold? 

Catch up on Unchained’s previous coverage: 

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• SBF Trial, Day 9: Nishad Singh Describes Former FTX CEO as a Bully and Big Spender
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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The third week of the criminal trial against Sam Bankman-Fried began Monday. Nishad Singh, one of three key witnesses for the prosecution, testified about the alleged misuse of customer funds and a toxic work environment at FTX, created by Sam Bankman-Fried. Singh's account echoed earlier testimony by former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison and former FTX CTO Gary Wang and raised questions anew about the company's venture investments, excessive spending on sponsorships, and attempts to deceive regulators. Singh also described his growing concerns about Bankman-Fried's lavish spending, even as the company faced mounting financial difficulties. 

Catch up on Unchained’s previous coverage: 

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Why These Lawyers Say It's Over for SBF-But His Only Hail Mary Is to Testify
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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Samson Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel, and Greg Strong, partner at DLX Law, dissect the second week of the criminal trial of Sam Bankman-Fried. At this point, the prosecution’s star witness, former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison, has testified, as well as another prominent insider, co-founder Gary Wang. Both Enzer and Strong believe that it’s already over for the defense, but agree that the only thing that could turn it around is testimony from SBF himself—but that runs the risk of the defendant significantly increasing his sentence. 

Find out how they thought the more salacious details of Ellison’s testimony, concerning alleged bribes to Chinese government officials, would affect the jury, and why Enzer believes introducing that testimony may have been risky for the government. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or your favorite podcast platform.

• Whether the prosecution gave the defense any fodder for its failed entrepreneur theory
• How SBF and Ellison’s romantic relationship could affect the jury’s deliberations
• The jury’s reaction to Ellison saying SBF’s belief was that “don’t lie, don’t steal” didn’t fit into his philosophy of utilitarianism 
• Why the defense didn’t object to the mention of alleged bribes to Chinese government officials the first time
• Why the defense attorney complained about photos shown of SBF and his hair
• How the jury might react to the testimony involving alleged Chinese government bribes, Thai prostitutes, and Saudi prince
• How Ellison crying in her testimony could affect the jury
• Why the defense didn’t ask Ellison about not hedging 
• Why the cross-examination of Gary Wang was limited in its success for the defense
• What caused a moment of tension between Zac Prince and the defense
• Why Greg and Sam think SBF shouldn’t testify, but believe it’s his only, very risky, chance 
• If convicted, how many years do they think SBF’s prison sentence will be?

• Crypto.com
• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel.
• Previous appearances on Unchained: 
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• SBF’s Lawyers Could Be Annoying the Judge. How Might That Impact the Trial?
• Greg Strong, partner at DLx Law

• Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• How Heated Sidebars During the SBF Trial Could Impact the Jury’s Decision
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF Trial, Day 7: In SBF Trial, Did the Defense Lose Its Opportunity With the Star Witness?
• SBF Trial, Day 8: Former BlockFi CEO Adds Credibility to Fraud Charges 
• SBF’s Lawyers Could Be Annoying the Judge. How Might That Impact the Trial?
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• Go deeper into the trial: 
• Unchained:
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial
• Cooperating Witnesses in the SBF Trial May Get Little to No Prison Time

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On the eighth day of the SBF trial, former BlockFi CEO Zac Prince took the stand, serving as a strong witness for the defense, while offering a detailed look into how Alameda Research's borrowing from FTX differed from traditional crypto lending, and the impact of FTX’s and Alameda’s collapse on BlockFi, which subsequently filed for bankruptcy.

The defense team tried to pin BlockFi’s loans to Alameda on BlockFi executives ignoring advice from its own credit team, but Prince twice corrected defense attorney Mark Cohen that, for the document in question, the executives did follow the advice of their credit team. The defense also tried to raise the notion that BlockFi would have declared bankruptcy no matter what had happened with FTX and Alameda, but Prince also held his ground that the collapse of SBF’s empire resulted in BlockFi’s own bankruptcy.

Catch up on Unchained’s previous coverage: 

• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here’s Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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The second week of Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial is underway, bringing emotional testimony from SBF’s ex-girlfriend and former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison, along with some surprising stories about alleged bribes to Chinese officials and discussion about reaching out to the Saudi Crown Prince for help. Ari Redbord, Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs, discusses why the question of who was actually in charge is so critical to the case, the defense’s strategy to discredit Caroline Ellison, and why sidebars in the courtroom can get so heated. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• Why Caroline Ellison is a critical witness on a "number of levels," according to Ari
• What a software developer at FTX revealed about whether SBF was directing trades
• Why a lawyer’s body language is something the jury looks out for 
• Why there have been so many sidebars in the trial and why they can sometimes get heated 
• The reason why the lawyers, particularly the defense team, have been so repetitive with their questions
• Considering the long prison sentence SBF is facing, why Ari "doesn't understand" SBF’s decision to push forward with the trial 
• Whether, after three days of testimonies, Ellison has come out as a credible witness for the jury
• Why the defense is facing an "uphill fight" and whether testimony from SBF would serve as a final Hail Mary for them

• Crypto.com
• Hedera
• Popcorn Network

• Ari Redbord, Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs.
• Previous appearances on Unchained: 
• Is TRM Labs Blocking Addresses From DeFi Protocols? Ari Redbord Says Yes
• The Legal and Regulatory Fallout From Terra’s Collapse: Who Will Pay?
• How Much Prison Time Is FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried Facing?

• Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• SBF’s Lawyers Could Be Annoying the Judge. How Might That Impact the Trial?
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• Go deeper into the trial: 
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial
• Cooperating Witnesses in the SBF Trial May Get Little to No Prison Time

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Day seven of Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial saw the defense team unable to discredit Caroline Ellison, despite multiple attempts. The defense's questions often seemed aimless, failing to draw any substantial conclusions. Ellison remained steadfast, revealing that SBF had plans to buy Telegram around the time Alameda "borrowed" $14 billion of FTX customer money.

Defense attorney Mark Cohen tried to portray Ellison as the one in charge of Alameda, but she clarified that SBF was the ultimate decision-maker. Ellison also disclosed that she had considered resigning from Alameda but was persuaded by SBF to stay, emphasizing his control over the firm.

The day continued with testimony from Christian Drappi, a former Alameda employee, who corroborated Ellison's account. Zac Prince, founder of the bankrupt crypto lending firm BlockFi, briefly took the stand, setting the stage for his testimony to continue the next day.

Catch up on Unchained’s previous coverage: 

• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here’s Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF Trial, Day 6: Caroline Ellison Recalls 'The Worst Week of My Life'
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and chop it up about the latest news. This week, the crew is joined by Gabriel Shapiro, general counsel at Delphi Labs, to talk about the key points in the criminal trial of Sam Bankman-Fried and his lackluster defense strategy so far. They also delve into Michael Lewis’ book and his depictions of SBF’s “lore and backstory,” and discuss how SBF’s “quirks of character” may have actually enticed investors.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• How Haseeb's previous comments on Sam Bankman-Fried’s intentions "didn't age well" after developments in the trial
• Why Gabriel believes that SBF is a "sociopath" and should have taken a plea deal if offered
• Shortcomings in the defense’s strategy and why Gabriel believes they’re “grasping at straws”
• How the fake numbers of FTX insurance fund highlight the weaknesses of a centralized exchange
• Why Matt Huang, cofounder of VC firm Paradigm, agreed to testify in such a high-profile trial, and why Haseeb as a VC himself wouldn't have done it
• Whether SBF understood the technical components of crypto and why he sounded like ChatGPT in his responses, according to Tarun
• Whether VCs are to blame for investing in FTX or what lessons VCs need to take away from the SBF debacle. 
• The differences and similarities between SBF and Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

• Gabriel Shapiro, General counsel of Delphi Labs
• Previous appearances on Unchained:
• Are DAOs Strong Enough to Survive the Regulators?
• What Does Mango Markets Exploiter Avi Eisenberg’s Arrest in Puerto Rico Mean for DeFi?

• Previous coverage of Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF’s Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• SBF’s Lawyers Could Be Annoying the Judge. How Might That Impact the Trial?
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• FTX Used a Fake Number to Beef Up Its Insurance Fund: Gary Wang

Previous coverage of the trial elsewhere: 

• NYT: What FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried and J.P. Morgan Have in Common
• Forbes: Sam Bankman-Fried Knew Plenty About His Alameda Research Hedge Fund–And Sent Details To Forbes Just Months Ago
• Tarun's tweet on insurance funds being onchain

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Day 6 of the SBF trial was marked by emotional testimony from Caroline Ellison, who shed tears as she detailed the financial chaos within Alameda and FTX. She also recounted dramatic incidents such as an alleged bribe by Alameda to a Chinese government official, creating accounts using the IDs of Thai prostitutes, and an attempt to raise money by selling FTX shares to a Saudi prince.

Ellison discussed the financial turmoil that began with the crypto market crash and how it led to desperate actions, allegedly directed by SBF. She revealed the manipulation of balance sheets, the use of FTX customer funds for risky investments, and the ethical compromises made to keep Alameda afloat.

The day also delved into the secretive culture within Alameda and FTX, highlighting the use of disappearing messages on Signal for sensitive discussions, and what was really happening behind the scenes as FTX began to implode. 

Catch up on Unchained’s previous coverage: 

• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here’s Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• SBF Trial, Day 5: SBF's Defense Finally Found Its Legs, But Can It Counter Caroline Ellison?
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research and SBF's ex-partner, took the stand to reveal the alleged financial mismanagement at Alameda and FTX, which she claimed was at Bankman-Fried’s direction. The cross examination of Gary Wang finally began to show how SBF’s lawyers plan to defend him, though Wang largely appeared to be a yes man who simply trusted and followed his friend and co-founder.

Ellison's revelations included Alameda's hidden trading of FTT to prop up its price, her warnings to SBF about Alameda’s inability to pay back its lenders if he put billions more into venture investments, and his views on risk and “expected value.” For instance, she claimed he said if, with a coin toss came up tails and would mean Earth’s destruction, he would toss the coin if there it was twice as likely that it would more than double prosperity on Earth. However, her testimony seemed designed to preemptively rebut the defense’s potential argument that Alameda needed to borrow customer funds because she had not hedged. 

Catch up on Unchained’s previous coverage: 

• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here’s Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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The first week of the criminal trial of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried has come to a close, with his former friends and FTX colleagues Adam Yedidia and Gary Wang delivering powerful testimonies that are forming the foundations for the prosecution’s arguments — arguments that the defense may have a difficult time surmounting. Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel, and Brian Klein, partner at Waymaker, discuss Alameda’s special privileges coded into the FTX software, the reason why a scorched FTX customer may have been chosen as the first witness, and why upcoming key witnesses are going to be a “real problem” for the defense.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or your favorite podcast platform.

• What we learned about the prosecution and defenses strategies after the first week of the trial
• How the jury being mostly professionals may impact deliberations
• Why Brian believes someone “out of the mainstream” would make an ideal juror for the defense
• Why Sam believes the defense’s opening was stronger than the prosecution’s
• Which arguments may be the most difficult for Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyers to defend
• Why the defense’s “building a plane as you’re flying” analogy may come back to hurt them in closing
• Why Sam believes the order of the witness testimony so far is helping the prosecution build the foundation of its case
• Whether Adam Yedidia’s testimony was effective at establishing him as a credible witness
• Whether the fact that some witnesses are cooperating to avoid jail time will impact the jury’s decision
• What Gary Wang, former CTO of FTX, revealed about Alameda's special privileges coded into FTX software and how it wasn’t an “oversight”
• Whether Judge Kaplan is growing impatient with the defense
• Whether the prosecution's objections were sustained reasonably by Judge Kaplan
• Why upcoming insider witnesses pose a “real problem” to the defense
• Why it's "not even an open question" that the defense team will appeal if they lose the case

• Crypto.com
• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel.
• Previous appearance on Unchained: SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• Brian Klein, partner at Waymaker
• Previous appearance on Unchained: SBF Behind Bars: Why Revoked Bail Is a Big Deal for Crypto’s Biggest Trial

• Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact
• SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges
• Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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Laura reports on the testimony of Gary Wang on Thursday, who described Alameda’s special privileges that were programmed into FTX’s code as early as July 2019, a few months after the exchange launched. 

These privileges included Alameda’s ability to have a negative balance on its FTX account. This meant that Alameda was able to transfer and withdraw more funds than it had, essentially “borrowing from the exchange.” Those funds, Wang said, belonged to FTX customers, and at the time that FTX declared bankruptcy, Alameda had borrowed $8 billion from the exchange. 

Wang said Alameda had a $65 billion line of credit — far higher than any other customer on the exchange. He also revealed details about FTT, the cryptocurrency that FTX had created, and the concerns that were raised about how the tokens were allegedly used to boost Alameda’s balance on the site.

If you need to catch up, don’t miss our recent coverage on the trial:

• SBF Trial, Day 3: Long-Time Friend Says, ‘FTX Defrauded All of Its Customers’
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ: Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ His Way to ‘Wealth, Power, and Influence’
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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The blockbuster trial of Sam Bankman-Fried wrapped up its third day, with multiple witnesses, including former FTX software developer Adam Yedidia, Paradigm co-founder Matt Huang, and FTX cofounder Gary Wang, taking the witness stand. Joshua Ashley Klayman, Senior Counsel, U.S. Head of FinTech and Head of Blockchain & Digital Assets at Linklaters, discusses the main takeaways from the trial so far, the surprising testimonies given by former close associates of SBF, and how the prosecution and defense plan to paint a picture of who SBF is to the jury.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• What Josh's biggest takeaways from the trial are so far
• Why Josh felt that the jury had “a lot to take in” in order to understand the basics of the case
• Whether the different backgrounds of the jury will affect the outcome of the trial
• Why the prosecution is arguing that regardless of the technical aspects of the case, the key issue is fraud
• How the defense plans to argue that SBF did not intend to defraud investors
• Why the selection of the first witness, a former FTX customer, is an "interesting" choice, according to Josh
• What is the fiat@ftx.com account and how it contributed to FTX’s undoing
• How they discovered the $8 billion hole in the FTX balance sheet and SBF's reaction at the time
• What an email revealed about the lack of corporate governance in FTX and Alameda

• Crypto.com
• Hedera
• Popcorn Network

• Joshua Ashley Klayman, Senior Counsel, U.S. Head of FinTech and Head of Blockchain & Digital Assets at Linklaters
• Previous appearances on Unchained:
• Gary Gensler vs. Crypto: What Will the SEC Attack Next?
• How Crypto And Blockchain Technology Should Be Regulated

• Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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Laura reports on the testimony of three witnesses on Thursday, including one who declared that “FTX defrauded all of its customers” and another stating that he had committed financial crimes at the direction of Sam Bankman-Fried.

Former FTX software developer Adam Yedidia, Paradigm co-founder Matt Huang, and FTX and Alameda co-founder Gary Wang filled in the details of different aspects of FTX and Alameda’s business. Huang’s testimony detailed how Paradigm expressed concern about FTX’s lack of corporate controls and how the company was “owned and controlled by Sam.” Wang has only started his testimony but has already said he implemented advantages for Alameda into FTX’s code at Bankman-Fried’s direction. 

Yedidia’s account had the most emotional details, describing how he had a strong belief in the company, to the point where, when employees began leaving FTX, he had messaged Bankman-Fried that he loved him and wasn’t going anywhere, but that it flipped once he realized “FTX defrauded all of its customers.” Find out what new information caused him to have a change of heart in this episode. 

If you need to catch up, don’t miss our recent coverage on the trial:

• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ: Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ His Way to ‘Wealth, Power, and Influence’
• SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’
• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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Laura reports on the opening statements of the prosecution and defense, which painted a portrait of Sam Bankman-Fried as power-hungry and discussed how he allegedly managed to fumble customer funds. 

Next witnesses are set to include Matt Huang, cofounder and managing partner at crypto VC firm Paradigm, and Gary Wang, former CTO of FTX. 

Tune in to get the latest updates and insights on a case that could have far-reaching implications for the crypto industry.

If you need to catch up, don’t miss our recent coverage on the trial:

• SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, they discuss the wildest claims in Michael Lewis’ new book on Sam Bankman-Fried, debate whether SBF’s effective altruism was ever genuine, and whether Ethereum should enshrine more features onto its protocol.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• Michael Lewis’ interview on “60 Minutes” and the wildest claims in his new book
• Whether SBF would have paid Donald Trump $5 billion not to run for president 
• Why Lewis characterizing FTX’s downfall as a bank run is misleading
• Whether FTX executives, in the moment of the collapse, fled to their parents’ homes
• Was SBF genuine in his belief in effective altruism or was it clever branding
• Whether we will still be talking about the SBF trial years down the line
• The debate on whether Ethereum should enshrine more features onto its core protocol
• Whether Lido poses a centralization risk to the Ethereum ecosystem
• Predictions on how the SBF trial will play out and whether SBF has a trick up his sleeve

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

SBF’s trial: 

• Unchained: 
• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect
• CBS: Rise, fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX at center of Michael Lewis' new book | 60 Minutes

Protocol enshrinement:

• Unchained: 
• Ethereum’s Vitalik Buterin Warns of Risks in Lido and Rocket Pool
• Some Ethereum Staking Services Commit to 22% Self-Limit of Validators

Others:

• Cryptoslate: Terra's Do Kwon and Daniel Shin conspired to falsify transactions, chat logs show

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Laura reports on a noticeably composed Bankman-Fried and delves into the jury de-selection process, revealing potential jurors with surprising crypto ties. The government's stance on a plea deal is finally clarified, and a long list of potential witnesses from the crypto world is unveiled.

Tune in to get the latest updates and insights on a case that could have far-reaching implications for the crypto industry.

If you need to catch up, don’t miss our recent coverage on the trial:

• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case
• The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

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The high-stakes trial of Sam Bankman-Fried is set to begin on October 3, and the FTX founder and former CEO will have to answer for his role in the cryptocurrency exchange’s downfall, which led to billions in losses. Both the prosecution and defense are currently preparing for what is set to be a significant milestone for the crypto industry. Kayvan Sadeghi, partner at Jenner & Block and Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel, discuss the differences between a civil and criminal trial, what the jury selection process might look like, and what arguments the prosecution and defense might use to support their cases. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• The difference between a civil and criminal trial and why it's difficult for the defense to prepare while Sam Bankman-Fried is in jail
• Whether SBF was offered a plea deal and if so, why he didn't take it
• What the process of vetting jurors looks like and what both sides are looking for
• What a pre-opening jury charge is and why Judge Lewis A. Kaplan might choose to use it
• The importance of intent when it comes to SBF’s charges
• The pros and cons of the defense using the argument that the FTX founder was receiving poor legal advice
• What charges SBF is facing and whether the defense or prosecution has the upper hand
• How the opening statements of both the prosecution and the defense might play out
• Whether SBF will be put on the stand and why that could be a "dangerous" move, according to Sam
• How the defense could respond to testimony from key witnesses like Caroline Ellison or Gary Wang
• How Judge Kaplan being a "tough sentencer" could impact SBF’s jail sentence, according to Sam

• Crypto.com
• LayerZero
• Popcorn Network

• Kayvan Sadeghi, partner and co-chair of Fintech & Crypto Assets at Jenner & Block
• Previous appearance on Unchained: Why the SEC vs. Ripple Order Is Now About 2 Things: Coinbase and Congress
• Samson Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel.

Previous coverage from Unchained on Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX:

• Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out
• Why FTX Might Try to Claw Back Funds From Retail Customers
• How Much Prison Time Is FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried Facing? 
• Why the Legal Process for FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried Could Take Years
• The Chopping Block: SBF Wants to Win in the Court of Public Opinion. Will He?
• Jesse Powell and Kevin Zhou on How FTX and Alameda Lost $10 Billion
• Sam Bankman-Fried on How to Prevent the Next Terra and 3AC

Details of the trial:

• Unchained: FTX: The Exchange That Brought Down the Industry
• CoinDesk: 
• Here's the Sam Bankman-Fried Trial Schedule
• The SBF Trial: How Did We Get Here?
• Here’s How FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s Trial May Play Out
• Forbes: Sam Bankman-Fried Could Face 'Very Long Sentence,' Judge Says Before Denying Release

SBF’s defense team:

• Unchained: Sam-Bankman-Fried Files New Request for Temporary Release Before Trial
• CoinDesk: 
• U.S. Department of Justice Opposes Sam Bankman-Fried's Latest Move for 'Temporary Release'

Key witnesses:

• Unchained: SBF’s Expert Witnesses Barred From Testifying at Trial
• Reuters: Who is Caroline Ellison, a key witness set to testify against Sam Bankman-Fried?
• NYT: Prosecutors Detail Evidence Against Sam Bankman-Fried - The New York Times
• CoinDesk: 
• All of Sam Bankman-Fried's Proposed Expert Witnesses Should Be Barred From Testifying: DOJ
• Judge Blocks Sam Bankman-Fried's Proposed Witnesses From Testifying
• Business Insider: Sam Bankman-Fried is being sent to jail after a judge revoked his bail over alleged witness tampering

Jury selection:

• CoinDesk: Sam Bankman-Fried Can Ask DOJ Witnesses About Drug Use

Cointelegraph: Sam Bankman-Fried’s political donations can be surfaced in trial, rules judge

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, the group sits down to discuss why U.S. crypto conferences are quieter than they have been in the past, which DeFi metrics are still useful for measuring a changing market, and advice for NFT founders on how to continue to innovate.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• Why Tarun says that the U.S. is “dead as a doorknob” for crypto for crypto conferences
• Main takeaways from recent crypto conferences such as Token2049 in Singapore and Permissionless in Austin
• How the metrics in DeFi keep changing, and which ones still have merit
• What are “chart crimes” and the gang's advice for entrepreneurs pitching to VCs
• Why Haseeb doesn't think that token economics are as useful as everyone thinks
• The Stoner Cat settlement with the SEC and how it impacts the broader conversation about whether NFTs are securities 
• Legal drama between the co-founders of the Milady NFT project
• Advice for NFT founders on how to achieve success in a changing market

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 
• Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures

NFTs

• Unchained: 
• Mila Kunis’ Stoner Cats NFT Project Pays $1 Million to Settle SEC Charges 
• Milady NFT Founder Says Rogue Developer Embezzled $1 Million from Treasury
• PFP NFTs: What Are They & Why Are They So Popular?
• Generative Art NFTs: What Are They & Why Are They So Popular?
• SEC: Are NFTs Securities?

Token2049:

• Haseeb’s panel on alt L1s

DeFi and metrics:

• Unchained:
• What Is TVL in DeFi? A Guide to Total Value Locked
• Can DeFi Allow You To Be Your Own Bank?
• How to Invest in DeFi: 4 Ways You Can Explore Today
• Yield Farming: What Is It & How Does It Work?

Regulation

• Unchained: U.S. House Lawmakers Urge SEC's Gensler to Approve Spot Bitcoin ETFs

The Block: Gensler takes heat from lawmakers over his approach to regulating crypto

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The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and former CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, is set to begin on October 3. The 31-year-old is accused of committing wire fraud and conspiracy to commit other types of fraud, in relation to the dramatic collapse of his crypto empire last year, which led to billions in losses. Nik De, CoinDesk's managing editor for global policy and regulation, discusses the importance of jury selection, the potential testimony of key witnesses, and how many years Bankman-Fried may face if he is found guilty.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• Why SBF's lawyers keep requesting the FTX founder be released 
• Why the jury selection is so important and how long it could take
• Why the DOJ opposed the proposed questions for the jury 
• Why the Judge agreed with the DOJ in blocking some of the witnesses proposed by the defense team
• How the defense team may try to discredit some of the proposed witnesses
• Whether the argument of SBF receiving “poor legal advice” holds any ground
• What role the political donations made by SBF may play in the trial
• How many years SBF could face if he were to be found guilty

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• Hedera
• Toku

• Nik De, CoinDesk's managing editor for global policy and regulation
• Previous appearances on Unchained:
• How SEC Chair Gary Gensler's Views on Crypto Have Changed Since His MIT Days
• Why the Ooki DAO Case Could Hurt Participation in DAOs

Previous coverage from Unchained on Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX:

• Why FTX Might Try to Claw Back Funds From Retail Customers
• The Chopping Block: Was FTX a Scam From the Very Beginning? 
• How Much Prison Time Is FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried Facing? 
• Why the Legal Process for FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried Could Take Years
• The Chopping Block: SBF Wants to Win in the Court of Public Opinion. Will He?
• Jesse Powell and Kevin Zhou on How FTX and Alameda Lost $10 Billion
• Did the Bahamian Government Direct SBF and Gary Wang to Hack FTX?
• The Chopping Block: Why Lenders Didn’t Liquidate Alameda When It Was Underwater 
• Erik Voorhees and Cobie on Why FTX Loaned Out Customers’ Assets
• The Chopping Block: FTX: The Biggest Collapse in the History of Crypto?
• Sam Bankman-Fried on How to Prevent the Next Terra and 3AC

SBF’s defense team motions:

• Judge Denies Sam Bankman-Fried’s Request for Temporary Release
• U.S. Department of Justice Opposes Sam Bankman-Fried's Latest Move for 'Temporary Release'
• Sam Bankman-Fried Can Use an 'Air-Gapped' Laptop in Court, Judge Rules
• Judge Blocks Sam Bankman-Fried's Proposed Witnesses From Testifying

Key witnesses:

• SBF’s Expert Witnesses Barred From Testifying at Trial
• Who is Caroline Ellison, a key witness set to testify against Sam Bankman-Fried?
• All of Sam Bankman-Fried's Proposed Expert Witnesses Should Be Barred From Testifying: DOJ
• Sam Bankman-Fried is being sent to jail after a judge revoked his bail over alleged witness tampering

Jury selection:

• Sam Bankman-Fried Can Ask DOJ Witnesses About Drug Use
• Sam Bankman-Fried’s political donations can be surfaced in trial, rules judge

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Bitcoin Ordinals have exploded in popularity since their launch by developer Casey Rodarmor in January, changing the NFT game with millions of inscriptions to date. But what comes next for Bitcoin-based digital artifacts? Danny Yang and Bill Tai, cofounders of Metagood and creators of NFT collection OnChainMonkey, discuss why they will move OnChainMonkey from Ethereum to Bitcoin, Rodarmor’s proposal to change the Ordinals inscription numbering system, and why they believe more creators should consider moving to Bitcoin.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

• How the idea for Metagood came up
• What is give-to-earn and how it is used to reward OnChainMonkey holders
• The differences between Ethereum versus Bitcoin when it comes to digital assets
• The creative potential of Bitcoin Ordinals 
• Why OnChainMonkey will move from Ethereum to Bitcoin
• Thoughts on Casey Rodarmor’s Bitcoin Ordinals proposal to change the inscription numbering system
• What are recursive inscriptions
• How to convince NFT creators to leave other blockchains for Bitcoin

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• LayerZero
• Toku

• Bill Tai, cofounder of Metagood and creator of OnChainMonkey
• Previous appearances on Unchained:
• https://unchainedcrypto.com/maitai-globals-bill-tai-on-why-blockchain-is-the-6th-wave-of-technology/ 
• Danny Yang,  cofounder of Metagood and creator of OnChainMonkey

• Unchained: 
• MaiTai Global’s Bill Tai On Why Blockchain Is The 6th Wave Of Technology 
• Bitcoin Ordinals Creators Propose Changing Inscriptions Numbering 
• What Are BRC-20 Tokens? A Brief Introduction
• Was Bitcoin Creator Satoshi Pro-NFTs?
• Bitcoin Ordinals Inscriptions Surge Past 2.7 Million 
• How to Create a Bitcoin Ordinal 

• Elsewhere: 
• Bitcoin Ordinals Trading Is Down Bad—But Just How Bad?
• A New Frontier for Bitcoin? Recursive Inscriptions Explained
• ‘NFTs will win on Bitcoin’ — OnChainMonkey NFT collection ditches Ethereum

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As lawsuits continue to pile up in the FTX saga, FTX chief John Ray III is focused on clawing back funds from former affiliates to pay back creditors. But how might that play out in court? Founder of 117 Partners Thomas Braziel, who specializes in the trading of bankruptcy claims, explains the different paths Ray may choose to go down and the potential outcomes of these cases.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

• The chances of FTX winning in court against Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents
• The case against Barbara Fried and Joseph Bankman 
• Whether civil cases could turn into criminal ones
• Whether bankruptcy proceedings and the criminal case against Sam Bankman-Fried are a coordinated effort 
• What retail clawbacks are and the likelihood that FTX will pursue them

• Crypto.com
• Arbitrum Foundation
• Thales DAO
• Toku

• Thomas Braziel, founder of 117 Partners
• Previous appearances on Unchained:
• Will FTX Reboot? Here’s John Ray’s Internal Deadline for Making a Decision
• Will FTX Customers Ever Recover Their Assets? Two Insolvency Experts Weigh In
• Will Celsius Survive the Bankruptcy Process?
• How Crypto Bankruptcy Claims Buyers Will Profit From the Collapse of FTX

• Previous coverage of Unchained on Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX:
• The Chopping Block: Was FTX a Scam From the Very Beginning? 
• How Much Prison Time Is FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried Facing? 
• Why the Legal Process for FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried Could Take Years
• The Chopping Block: SBF Wants to Win in the Court of Public Opinion. Will He?
• Jesse Powell and Kevin Zhou on How FTX and Alameda Lost $10 Billion
• Is the Collapse of Crypto Lending Over, or Is It Just Starting?
• Did the Bahamian Government Direct SBF and Gary Wang to Hack FTX?
• The Chopping Block: Why Lenders Didn’t Liquidate Alameda When It Was Underwater 
• Erik Voorhees and Cobie on Why FTX Loaned Out Customers’ Assets
• The Chopping Block: FTX: The Biggest Collapse in the History of Crypto?
• Sam Bankman-Fried on How to Prevent the Next Terra and 3AC
• Unchained: 
• New Suit Claims That FTX Kept Its Fraud All in the Family
• Stanford University Will Return $5.5 Million to FTX
• FTX Sues SBF’s Parents to Claw Back Misappropriated Funds: Report
• Full text of the FTX lawsuit against Bankman and Fried
• CoinDesk: Sam Bankman-Fried’s Dad Thought His Son Wasn’t Paying Him Enough, So He Got Mom Involved
• Bloomberg: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Elite Parents Enabled His Crypto Empire
• The Verge: The best stuff Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents bought using FTX money

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders chop it up about the latest news. This week, Haseeb Qureshi and Tom Schmidt speak to Will Warren, cofounder of 0x Labs, to discuss why the CFTC issued them a Wells Notice, how they responded to regulatory scrutiny, and how other countries may offer a blueprint for crypto regulation.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights: 

• why the CFTC issued a Wells Notice to 0x
• how a decentralized application addresses the issue of geolocalization of users
• how the team at 0x worked together with the CFTC to avoid violating the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) again
• what are the implications of the settlement and who's liable for offering services 
• why it's so hard for crypto projects to follow the rules without clear regulatory guidance
• why Haseeb says that the SEC wants this industry to “not exist”
• how lack of regulatory clarity may be stunting US innovation
• whether there's a conflict of interest between the companies building protocols and the protocols themselves

• Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly 
• Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly 

• Will Warren, cofounder of 0x Labs 

• Unchained: 
• UniswapX Launches With MEV Protection and Gas Free Swaps
• CFTC Charges Three DeFi Protocols With Violating AML Rules, Operating Without Licenses

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