Judge approves delaying forfeiture of donations from FTX-funded PACs

A federal judge signed off on a petition from United States Justice Department officials requesting more time to assess the “forfeitability of funds” former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried made to several political action committees (PACs).

In a July 26 filing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, US Attorney Damian Williams said his office was continuing discussions with Bankman-Fried’s attorneys regarding funds sent to five PACs in 2022. The primarily Democratic-focused committees included the House Majority PAC, Senate Majority PAC, FF PAC, FF USA Action, EMILYs List and GMI PAC.

Judge Lewis Kaplan approved the prosecutors’ petition, extending the deadline for the PACs to file third-party petitions from July 26 to Sept. 13. Bankman-Fried reportedly donated roughly $40 million directly to political candidates and PACs in 2022 before FTX's downfall.

One of the biggest recipients of Bankman-Fried’s donations not mentioned in the court filing was Protect Our Future, a Democratic-focused PAC that reportedly received $27 million from the former CEO. During his 2023 criminal trial, SBF said that his political contributions came from “loans from Alameda Research” as part of efforts to influence the US government’s policies on crypto.

In July, a Wall Street Journal report suggested that Bankman-Fried’s father , mother, and brother had directed FTX assets to fund political contributions. Former FTX Digital Markets co-CEO Ryan Salame is expected to report to prison in August after pleading guilty and being sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for engaging in campaign finance fraud and related charges.

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Judge Kaplan sentenced Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison following his conviction on seven felony counts related to fraud and misuse of FTX user funds. SBF’s legal team filed a notice of appeal in April. The former FTX CEO remains incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn to assist in his own defense.

Former FTX executives Nishad Singh and Gary Wang, who both testified at SBF’s criminal trial, are scheduled to be sentenced in October and November following their guilty pleas. It was unclear at the time of publication if or when former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison would face a sentencing hearing.

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