Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers reveal his planned testimony in FTX fraud trial
Lawyers for Sam Bankman-Fried late Wednesday revealed details of his planned testimony if he takes the witness stand at his FTX fraud trial.
Bankman-Fried’s legal team told Judge Lewis Kaplan in a six-page letter that he would address three key areas in such testimony, including suggesting that he relied on FTX’s former legal team in allowing some actions that later led to the implosion and bankruptcy of the cryptocurrency exchange.
Lawyers for the disgraced FTX chief also said he would also cite his understanding of common industry practices, as well as his intention to comply with Bahamian authorities.
Bankman-Fried faces seven criminal counts, including wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering, that could land him in prison for more than 100 years if he is convicted at his trial in Manhattan federal court.
Bankman-Fried, the son of two Stanford legal scholars, has pleaded not guilty in the case.
Will he or won’t he?
The letter to Kaplan appears to cast doubt on whether the disgraced crypto billionaire will take the witness stand.
Earlier Wednesday, one of Bankman-Fried’s two chief trial attorneys, Mark Cohen, said in a conference call that his client would testify as would three other people.
But in his letter Wednesday evening, Cohen wrote, “Accordingly, should Mr. Bankman-Fried decide to testify in his defense, he should be permitted to testify as to his understanding of industry practices regarding use of omnibus wallets to show his good faith and lack of criminal intent.”
The statement suggests Bankman-Fried might stand down on testifying, should the defense’s requests be rejected.
Blaming ex-FTX lawyers
Kaplan previously ruled that Bankman-Fried’s lawyers could not make a so-called advice of counsel argument in their opening remarks since it might risk prejudicing the jury.
But Cohen in the new letter told Kaplan that although prosecutors “previously moved to preclude Mr. Bankman-Fried from offering evidence or argument regarding the involvement of attorneys,” Bankman-Fried’s “knowledge of the involvement of counsel in these matters” is “directly relevant” to “his state of mind and good faith at the time.”
Cohen cited specific examples where, at the guidance of FTX lawyers, Bankman-Fried adopted a policy which prosecutors argued shows his criminality.
One example was company-wide policy on the encrypted messaging app Signal.
Caroline Ellison, Bankman-Fried’s ex-girlfriend who also ran crypto hedge fund Alameda Research, testified SBF directed FTX and Alameda employees to use the disappearing message setting on Signal. She said he told them to be very careful about what they put in writing because of potential legal exposure.
Lesser-known FTX co-founder and ex-chief technology officer Gary Wang, as well as senior FTX developer Adam Yedidia, also testified to the directive that Signal communications be set to auto-delete.
The government similarly asserted in its opening argument before the jury that the 30-day auto-deletion policy on Signal was because Bankman-Fried “didn’t want a paper trail for his crimes.”
But Cohen wrote that Bankman-Fried’s understanding was that these auto-deletion policies were “instituted under the guidances of lawyers.”
In another example, Cohen pointed to the billions of dollars worth of FTX customer deposits that went directly into a bank account controlled by Alameda.
Prosecutors say customer cash was shuttled to Alameda via two channels: users depositing cash directly into accounts held by Alameda and through a secret backdoor that was baked into FTX’s code.
But attorneys for Bankman-Fried allege that SBF’s “understanding as to the involvement of counsel in the formation” of these accounts and in the payment arrangement established between FTX and Alameda would be “directly relevant” to the defendant’s “good faith belief that there was nothing improper about using Alameda-controlled entities to accept FTX customer deposits.”
In these and other examples involving the guidance of former FTX counsel, defense attorneys for Bankman-Fried return to the same rationale that the ex-FTX chief was acting in good faith and not with the criminal intent alleged by the government.
Blaming the Bahamian authorities
Wang has testified that last Nov. 12, after FTX declared bankruptcy, Bankman-Fried asked that Wang drive with him to the Bahamas Securities Commission for a meeting.
On the drive, Bankman-Fried told Wang to transfer assets to Bahamian liquidators because he believed they would allow him to maintain control of the company. Wang said he was not in the meeting with the securities authority, though Bankman-Fried’s dad was present. Wang said he returned to the U.S. and met with American prosecutors the next day.
He faces up to 50 years in prison when he faces a judge for sentencing following this trial. He told jurors he signed a six-page cooperation agreement that requires him to meet with prosecutors, answer their questions truthfully and turn over evidence.
Feds further allege that SBF prioritized paying certain creditors, including Bahamian authorities. In its pretrial motion, the government pointed to Bankman-Fried’s “criminal intent,” as well as the “false nature of his representations” that he wanted to “do right by customers.”
Cohen writes, “We anticipate eliciting testimony from Mr. Bankman-Fried regarding his good faith intentions on November 12, 2022 with respect to compliance with orders by Bahamian authorities to transfer assets from FTX to the Securities Commission of The Bahamas over the objections of FTX’s in-house counsel and U.S. bankruptcy counsel.”
“Such testimony would require Mr. Bankman-Fried to discuss his belief that the Bahamian authorities were acting in the best interests of FTX customers, whereas FTX’s in-house counsel and outside bankruptcy counsel in the United States had conflicts of interest,” the letter continues.
Blaming the status quo in crypto
Bankman-Fried’s understanding of commonly accepted industry practices may also figure prominently in his testimony.
In the crypto vernacular, an omnibus account is where the digital assets of multiple users are held collectively in a single account. Cryptocurrency exchanges and others in the industry typically use this type of collective storage strategy into order to slash costs and streamline the workflow.
In the case of FTX, the commingling of customer and company assets has become a major point of contention between the government and the defense.
Prosecutors argued that FTX’s “use of omnibus wallets is relevant to this case,” the letter said.
“For example, the Government elicited testimony from Mr. Sun that he did not believe that FTX customer deposits could permissibly be commingled with other funds of the business … and that FTX utilized an omnibus wallet for all customer digital assets,” the document continues, referring to FTX’s former general counsel, Can Sun.
“We respectfully submit that Mr. Bankman-Fried’s knowledge of industry practices regarding the use of omnibus wallets is relevant to his good faith belief that his conduct was permissible,” the letter added.
“Mr. Bankman-Fried’s understanding of whether FTX’s actions were consistent with the crypto industry practices with regard to use of omnibus wallets is probative of his good faith belief that FTX’s (and his own) actions were proper.”
![Italian DC fast charger maker Alpitronic enters the US market [video]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/09/Seite-1-KeyVisual_alpitronic_2hypercharger-scaled-1.jpg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
Electrek‘s Seth Weintraub went to Alpitronic America’s new HQ to speak with CEO Mike Doucleff about its plans to roll out its ultra-fast chargers across the US.
Bolzano, Italy-based Alpitronic was founded in 2009, and it specializes in the development and production of DC fast chargers. The global company’s best-known product line is the Hypercharger, an ultra-fast EV charging station that can deliver charging power from 50 kW to 400 kW, depending on the model.
Alpitronic Americas recently announced an agreement with Mercedes-Benz High-Power Charging to become the first DC fast-charging network to deploy Hypercharger 400 units at scale in the US.
Alpitronics Americas’ new headquarters’ 68,000-square-foot office and industrial space in Charlotte, North Carolina, includes a diagnostics laboratory and repair center, a spare parts warehouse, a training center, and space for as many as 300 employees.
The Bolzano, Italy-based company’s Hyperchargers achieve, on average, an efficiency rate greater than 97.5%, and that its repair and service network can service chargers anywhere in the US.
Alpitronic cofounder and CEO Philipp Senoner said, “As a natural part of Alpitronic’s growth, we are anxious to expand our industry-leading Hypercharger network from Europe, where we are market-share leader, to North America. We are pleased with the talent we are finding in North Carolina and look forward to setting a new standard for the EV charging network in the US.”
Alpitronic chargers support all EV brands. Pre-production units have been tested publicly in Rock Hill, SC, and Portland, OR. The first US-built, public chargers are expected to be installed and available in October.
Seth and Mike Doucleff discuss what Aliptronic’s main driver was to come to the US, what attracted them to Charlotte, and what the company thinks the future of DC fast chargers is in the US, among other things. Their conversation begins at 00:41 on the Electrek podcast below:
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![Volvo CE rolls out some new hotness at Volvo Days 2024 [part 1]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/09/IMG_3231.jpg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
This week, Volvo Group held its once-every-three-years “Volvo Days” event in Shippensburg, PA for the first time since the pandemic, showing off tons (literally!) of new equipment, new trucks, and new concepts – including a couple of “world’s first” debuts.
What is Volvo Days? That might require a bit of background …
The heavy equipment world operates on something of a three-year cycle. ConExpo, the industry’s biggest trade show, happens every three years. That sets the tone, with companies showing off all their hottest concepts and forward-thinking new projects. That’s year 1. Year 2 is typically when shows like Volvo Days typically take place, with manufacturers rolling out the production versions of the concepts they showed at ConExpo and inviting a mix of dealers, end-users, and journalists in to try out some of what got showed at ConExpo. Year 3 is more insular, with the manufacturers bringing in salespeople to get them trained on new products and prepare them for how to talk about what the company is planning to show at next year’s ConExpo.
ConExpo was last year, so this year we get Volvo Days – for the first time since 2018, in fact, since the 2021 event was canceled due to COVID. That makes this the first Volvo Days in six years … and expectations were high.
The kickoff
Volvo kicked off the week’s events with a drone display highlighting the company’s construction equipment history – appropriate, given that the event was held at Volvo CE’s Pennsylvania engineering and production campus. The drone show was followed by a genuinely impressive, highly choreographed equipment ballet that featured new electric equipment shown for the first time in North America, as well as the new-for-2025 Volvo VNL and Mack MD Electric trucks doing some heavy lifting and hauling.
The show lasted well over thirty minutes, and it was impossible for me to keep track of everything that was happening, but you can get a sense of it in the video (above).
Compact electric equipment
Volvo had its new, in-production L20/120 Electric wheel loader and ECR25 Electric excavator front and center in its reception center, along with information highlighting their competitive advantages in the compact equipment space.
The best thing about Volvo Days, however, isn’t that they have interesting vehicles on display – it’s the fact that nearly every one of those interesting vehicles is available to experience first hand … including the 30-ton EC230 Electric excavator.
All the electric excavators (even the mini) were incredibly smooth and quiet, with noticeably fewer vibrations than their diesel counterparts … which we also got to play with.
That said, I’m not a “real” equipment operator, which means my seat of the pants impressions are probably worth less than those of the people who use these things every day. That’s why I was glad to have Mike Switzer, my co-host on The Heavy Equipment Podcast, along for the ride.
“It’s really impressive, and the articulation on the Steelwrist is incredible,” Mike told me, after hopping out of the demo EC230. “I’ve seen it before, obviously, but I’ve never had a chance to use it. I think every municipality needs to take a look at that.”
Electric compaction
Over on the compaction side, Volvo had its DD25 Electric vibrating drum compactor on display – where the all-electric tandem roller was joined by two all-new siblings being shown off for the first time ever: a pre-production DD15 Electric “mini” compactor prototype seemingly designed for sidewalks and driveways, and the TC13 Electric trench compactor.
The TC13 Electric is designed as a walk-behind unit that uses its heavy batteries to provide the compaction mass – but those heavy batteries won’t get depleted in the hour or so of operation that most trench compactors see on a busy day. To keep the little TC13 useful throughout the day, Volvo gave it a pair of 110 and 220V outlets.
Specs weren’t released, but Volvo’s compaction brand manager claimed those outlets were more than capable of keeping the rest of the job site’s battery-operated tools running all day long, and even packed enough juice (in a pinch) to power a portable office, table saw, or drill press.
“Did you see his face when I asked if it could run an arc welder?” asked Mike, smiling. “He said, ‘It’s not something we’d advise,’ but you could tell he liked that question.”
Yeah, he did!
Electrek’s Take
Somewhere around the twenty minute mark of the “equipment ballet” show, something broke inside my brain. I think it was the sparks flying off the bucket when the L20 Electric scooped up a few thousand pounds of gravel and sand at full speed, scraping its bucket along the ground. Maybe it was the hydrogen-powered articulated loader, or the open bar.
Regardless, one thing that was made very clear at Volvo Days ’24 is that, while other companies are still developing the initial entries into the electric commercial vehicle space, Volvo has not just a full line of products – but an expanding line of products, with the company entering new spaces specifically because of the unique advantages electric offers.
As Volvo’s North American President, Scott Young, explains, the future is electric, and Volvo’s vision for the future has the company firmly in the leadership position … but more on that in part 2.
ORIGINAL CONTENT FROM ELECTREK.
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EV maker Lucid Motors (LCID) opened its new office in Detroit this week, hoping to attract engineers from “one of the biggest talent pools in the Western world.”
Lucid sets up shop in Detroit for engineering talent
Lucid celebrated the grand opening of its new office in Southfield, Michigan, roughly 15 miles northwest of Detroit.
At its new office, Lucid is “growing our team of hardware engineers, R&D, operations, and more” as it looks toward its next growth phase.
“We need talent quickly, and that’s what this hub is about,” Eric Bach, Lucid’s senior vice and chief engineer, said at an event at the company’s new office.
Bach explained that as Ford and GM take talent from EV startups like Lucid, Tesla, and Rivian, Lucid looks to attract traditional engineering skills that are central to Detroit.
The company has already hired 24 engineers at its new hub, according to Lucid’s vice president of vehicle engineering, Charles Wildig told Automotive News. However, it plans to hire another 30 by the end of the year while growing its engineering team “exponentially.”
Wildig said that Lucid gets double the number of applications for every engineering position in Michigan compared to California.
“Michigan is one of the biggest talent pools in the Western world for automotive,” he said, adding, “It’s very difficult to find that kind of talent in California.”
The next growth phase
Lucid is adding engineering talent as it prepares to launch its first electric SUV, the Gravity, later this year.
Last week, during its Technology & Manufacturing Day, Lucid revealed that the Gravity will feature an NACS port in 2025, unlocking access to over 15,000 Tesla superchargers.
Lucid also showcased how the electric SUV and advanced future technology will enable “mass savings.”
CEO Peter Rawlinson claims Lucid is already “years ahead of the competition” but promises new tech, like its next-gen “Atlas” drive units, will be even more advanced.
The drive unit’s smaller, more efficient design will unlock more performance at a lower cost. The next-gen tech will power Lucid’s new midsize EV platform. Lucid teased its upcoming midsize electric SUV during the event, due out in 2026.
The midsize SUV will be the first to launch on Lucid’s new lower-cost platform. Last month, the company confirmed to Electrek that it plans to launch three lower-cost models on the midsize platform.
Lucid is already backing up its claim of being “years ahead,” with the 2025 Air Pure being the most energy-efficient mass-production car ever, with a record 146 MPGe and 5 miles per kWh efficiency. The cheapest trim starts at $71,400.
The Lucid Air is the longest-range EV on the market, with some models offering over 500 miles range.
Lucid’s Gravity electric SUV will launch later this year, starting at under $80,000. The midsize electric SUV is expected to launch in 2026, starting at around $50,000
Bach said Lucid is in talks with “many” automakers about sourcing its EV powertrain tech. The company already secured a deal with Aston Martin to provide EV battery and powertrain tech last June.
Because of its compact design, the powertrain can easily fit into rivals’ systems. “That means everybody can just plug and play technically,” Bach said. He added, “We are open for business,” and Lucid wants to “embrace” the competition.
Source: Automotive News, Lucid Motors
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