FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has seemingly been doing it tough behind bars, eating only bread with peanut butter to accommodate his vegan diet, while exhausting his supply of prescription medication.
In the same hearing where Bankman-Fried pleaded not guilty to seven fraud-related charges, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers pleaded for the former FTX CEO to receive better treatment inside Brooklyn’s notorious Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), according to an Aug. 22 transcript shared by the Inner City Press.
Bankman-Fried’s attorneys claimed that due to the lack of vegan options provided by the prison, he had been forced to subsist on a diet of bread, peanut butter and water. The former FTX boss refused to eat the “flesh diet” being served at the MDC.
Mark Cohen: They are serving him a flesh diet. He is only eating bread and water, and sometimes peanut butter. This is one of the most complex cases in this courthouse. This is outrageous and it needs to be remedied.
Judge Netburn: I will look into this, today— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) August 22, 2023
Bankman-Fried’s attorney, Mark Cohen, noted that his client hadn’t received his ADHD medication since arriving in prison and was “fearful” they would run out.
“My client takes Adderall… And like many people in the world, he follows a vegan diet. He had not received his Adderall at all, in the last 11 days,” said Cohen.
Cointelegraph uncovered a commissary list from 2020 which reveals that SBF could be paying $3.15 for peanut butter on a menu that consists almost entirely of meat, dairy and fast food.
U.S. Federal Court Judge Sarah Netburn said she’d look further into Bankman-Fried’s treatment.
Related: Sam Bankman-Fried prosecutors submit proposed jury instructions for trial
Bankman-Fried’s legal team argued that his imprisonment was impacting their ability to prepare for his upcoming trials — the first of which is scheduled for Oct. 2 this year.
“There are serious Sixth Amendment issues. Our client cannot prepare for trial. He was remanded since August 11. No discovery for 11 days, six weeks from trial. It is voluminous, it can only be reviewed online. We have been offered only fictions as solutions.”
On Aug. 21 Judge Kaplan ordered that Bankman-Fried could contact his lawyers in a one-time release on Aug. 22. He was allowed access to one internet-enabled laptop connected to one WiFi device.
In the most recent hearing, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers said they had received an offer where he would potentially be able to visit the New York courthouse two days a week from 9am to 3pm.
However, they noted that Bankman-Fried would only be given access to a pencil and paper and would have to communicate with them by pressing what he’d written against the glass barrier between them.
Company bosses hiring in the gig economy could face up to five years in prison if they fail to check if their employees can legally work in the UK, the Home Office has said. The employers could also be banned from operating as company directors, have their business closed down, or be hit with fines of up to £60,000 for every worker who isn’t checked as part of the government crackdown. The announcement comes as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper prepares to speak to Sky News breakfast show Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips today. Her department has said “thousands” of companies which hire gig economy and zero-hour contract workers are not legally required to check whether they have the right to work in the UK. Politics latest: Follow live updates The gig economy refers to an employment arrangement where work is assigned on a short-term or job-by-job basis in sectors such as construction, food delivery, beauty salons and courier services. Food delivery firms Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats all use this approach to employment. However, all three of those employers already voluntarily carry out checks to ensure their delivery riders are eligible to work in the UK. The Home Office has now announced that all employers who hire gig economy or zero-hour contract workers will have to carry out these “vital checks” which take “just minutes to complete”. This amendment to the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill will help “level the playing field for the majority of honest companies who do the right thing”, the government department added. The Home Office said it will provide the checks free of charge and that “clamping down” on illegal working forms a “critical part of the government’s plan to strengthen the entire immigration system”. The move is also intended to “undermine people smugglers using the false promise of jobs for migrants”, it added. Ms Cooper said: “Turning a blind eye to illegal working plays into the hands of callous people smugglers trying to sell spaces on flimsy, overcrowded boats with the promise of work and a life in the UK. “These exploitative practices are often an attempt to undercut competitors who are doing the right thing. But we are clear that the rules need to be respected and enforced.” Read more politics news: Meanwhile the government is preparing to host the first international summit in the UK on how to tackle people-smuggling gangs. Ministers and enforcement staff from 40 countries will meet in London on Monday and Tuesday to discuss international cooperation, supply routes, criminal finances and online adverts for dangerous journeys. Countries including Albania, Vietnam and Iraq – where migrants have travelled from to the UK – will join the talks as well as France, the US and China. The government will also hand counter-terror style powers to police and enforcement agencies to crack down on people-smuggling gangs as part of amendments to the bill. Institutional adoption of Bitcoin in the European Union remains sluggish, even as the United States moves forward with landmark cryptocurrency regulations that seek to establish BTC as a national reserve asset. More than three weeks after President Donald Trump’s March 7 executive order outlined plans to use cryptocurrency seized in criminal cases to create a federal Bitcoin (BTC) reserve, European companies have largely remained silent on the issue. The stagnation may stem from Europe’s complex regulatory regime, according to Elisenda Fabrega, general counsel at Brickken, a European real-world asset (RWA) tokenization platform. “European corporate adoption remains limited,” Fabrega told Cointelegraph, adding: “This hesitation reflects a deeper structural divide, rooted in regulation, institutional signaling and market maturity. Europe has yet to take a definitive stance on Bitcoin as a reserve asset.” Bitcoin’s economic model favors early adopters, which may pressure more investment firms to consider gaining exposure to BTC. The asset has outperformed most major global assets since Trump’s election despite a recent correction. Asset performance since Trump’s election victory. Source: Thomas Fahrer Despite Trump’s executive order, only a small number of European companies have publicly disclosed Bitcoin holdings or crypto services. These include French banking giant BNP Paribas, Swiss firm 21Shares AG, VanEck Europe, Malta-based Jacobi Asset Management and Austrian fintech firm Bitpanda. A recent Bitpanda survey suggests that European financial institutions may be underestimating crypto investor demand by as much as 30%. Related: Friday’s US inflation report may catalyze a Bitcoin April rally The EU’s slower adoption appears tied to its patchwork of regulations and more conservative investment mandates, analysts at Bitfinex told Cointelegraph. “Europe’s institutional landscape is more fragmented, with regulatory hurdles and conservative investment mandates limiting Bitcoin allocations.” “Additionally, European pension funds and large asset managers have been slower to adopt Bitcoin exposure due to unclear guidelines and risk aversion,” they added. Related: Bitcoin ‘more likely’ to hit $110K before $76.5K — Arthur Hayes Beyond the fragmented regulations, European retail investor appetite and retail participation are generally lower than in the US, according to Iliya Kalchev, dispatch analyst at digital asset investment platform Nexo. Europe is “generally more conservative in adopting new financial instruments,” the analyst told Cointelegraph, adding: “This stands in stark contrast to the deep, liquid, and relatively unified US capital market, where the spot Bitcoin ETF rollout was buoyed by strong retail demand and a clear regulatory green light.” iShares Bitcoin ETP listings. Source: BlackRock BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, launched a Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe on March 25, a development that may boost institutional confidence among European investors. Magazine: Bitcoiner sex trap extortion? BTS firm’s blockchain disaster: Asia Express
The New York State Attorney General’s (NAYG) recent legal action against Galaxy Digital over its promotional ties to the now-collapsed cryptocurrency Terra (LUNA) was unfair and an abuse of the legal system, says SkyBridge Capital and founder Anthony Scaramucci. “It’s LAWFARE, pure and simple due to an obscure but dangerously powerful New York law known as the Martin Act,” Scaramucci said in a March 28 X post. “The law has no need to prove intent, creating a low standard of proof that can open the door for abuse like this. It shouldn’t exist,” he said. New York’s Martin Act is one of the US’s strictest anti-fraud and securities laws, allowing prosecutors the power to pursue financial fraud cases without needing to prove intent. The NAYG alleged that Galaxy Digital violated the Martin Act over its alleged promotion of Terra, with Galaxy Digital agreeing to a $200 million settlement. According to NAYG documents filed on March 24, Galaxy Digital acquired 18.5 million LUNA tokens at a 30% discount in October 2020, then promoted them before selling them without abiding by disclosure rules. Scaramucci reiterated that Galaxy CEO Michael Novogratz was under the impression everything he was saying about Luna was true, as he had been deceived by Terraform Labs and its former CEO, Do Kwon. Source: Amanda Fischer Meanwhile, MoonPay president of enterprise, Keith Grossman, said he had never heard of the Martin Act and had to look it up using AI chatbot ChatGPT. “It is so broad and essentially is the essence of lawfare,” Grossman said. “Sorry you got caught in the crosshairs of it, Mike,” he added. Related: Sonic unveils high-yield algorithmic stablecoin, reigniting Terra-Luna ‘PTSD’ The filing alleged that Galaxy helped a “little-known” token, referring to LUNA, increase its market price from $0.31 in October 2020 to $119.18 in April 2022 while “profiting in the hundreds of millions of dollars.” Asset manager and investor Anthony Pompliano said he isn’t familiar with the details of the lawsuit but vouched for Novogratz, calling him a “good man” who has devoted a lot of time and money to helping others. The Terra collapse is one of the crypto industry’s most infamous failures. In March 2024, SEC attorney Devon Staren said in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York that Terra was a “house of cards” that collapsed for investors in 2022. Magazine: Arbitrum co-founder skeptical of move to based and native rollups: Steven Goldfeder
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