Caroline Ellison’s testimony on FTX shook the crypto community. “The crimes were committed by Sam” Caroline said at the opening of the trial on October 10! In her testimony, the former director of Alameda Research returned at length to the responsibility of her ex-boyfriend Sam Bankman Fried in the collapse of FTX. From financial malfeasance involving Alameda to FTT price manipulation and SBF’s political ambitions, Caroline Ellison reveals a great deal…
SBF is the culprit, says Caroline Ellison
The trial surrounding the collapse of FTX continued on October 10 in the United States. Today’s hearing was marked by the testimony from Caroline Ellison, director of Alameda Research. In his deposition, she revealed Sam Bankman Fried’s full responsibility for the collapse of FTX.
Caroline admitted that customers and investors of FTX as well as lenders of Alameda were swindled. Thanks to various financial misappropriations, Alameda took $14 billion from FTX. These defrauded billions were used for investments Alameda. Only a fraction of this amount was reimbursed. Despite having participated in these frauds, Caroline said that everything was done on SBF’s orders.
Alameda took several billion dollars from FTX customers and used it for its own investments. We ended up taking about $14 billion, some of which we were able to pay back. It was he who ordered me to commit these crimes.
Caroline Ellison.
SBF between political ambition and the quest for influence
Sam Bankman Fried was known as a major donor for political actors. According to federal records, Republicans and Democrats received up to $40 million from him. These donations were not pure charity, informs Caroline.
According to her, SBF was very interested in politics. Former FTX CEO said he wanted to use his money to exert influence. Above all else, he wanted to become President of the United States. He even believed he had a 5% chance of becoming president.
FTT, a token with a manipulated price
Sam Bankman Fried and other members of the business development team at FTX created the FTT token. Although the purpose of the token was to raise funds for FTX, 60-70% of the initial FTT distribution went to Alameda. These tokens were obtained free of charge without being included in the balance sheet Alameda.
Furthermore, the price of the FTT token has always been manipulated. According to Caroline, Sam Bankman-Fried made artificial purchases of FTT to support his market price. The FTX CEO felt that the price of FTT should not go below 1 dollar.
Both director of Alameda Research and ex-girlfriend of SBF, Caroline Ellison seems to be a key element in understanding the malfeasance around FTX. Her testimony will continue on October 11, 2023.
I dream of a world where every citizen has total control over themselves, including their finances. I believe that Bitcoin is one of the tools that will achieve this revolution. Since 2019, I am learning about this cryptocurrency and spreading the word around.
