Former FTX CEO, Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, made a rare courtroom appearance to address potential conflicts of interest with his lawyers. Bankman-Fried chose to waive his right to conflict-free legal representation, allowing lawyers Marc Mukasey and Torrey Young to represent both him and former Celsius CEO, Alex Mashinsky, who took similar action in a recent hearing.
This court appearance in the Southern District of New York was one of the first times Bankman-Fried had been seen outside of jail since his conviction on seven felony counts in November 2023. While Bankman-Fried has largely been out of the media spotlight during his time behind bars, photos surfaced on February 19 showing him with other inmates.
Mukasey and Young will continue to represent Bankman-Fried and Mashinsky, while lawyers Christian Everdell and Mark Cohen, who represented Bankman-Fried during his criminal trial, will withdraw. Bankman-Fried is scheduled to appear before Judge Lewis Kaplan for sentencing on March 28.
Bankman-Fried, once hailed as the “Golden Boy” of the crypto industry, stepped down as CEO of FTX in November 2022, and the firm filed for bankruptcy. He was held in custody in the Bahamas before being extradited to the U.S., where he was later charged and convicted for fraud involving funds between FTX and Alameda Research.
Initially, after his trial in October 2023, Bankman-Fried was expected to face five more felony charges in March. However, reports in December suggested that prosecutors were planning not to proceed with a second trial due to public interest. Bankman-Fried’s defense team is expected to submit sentencing recommendations by February 27.
In light of the collapse of FTX, many are questioning the trustworthiness of crypto exchanges.