Bankman-Fried's Legal Team Pursues Inquiry into FTX Lawyers' Role in $200M Loan Approval
Summary:
Sam Bankman-Fried's attorneys are seeking permission to investigate the claimed involvement of FTX lawyers in approving $200 million loans from Alameda confirmed by Gary Wang. In the wake of the prosecution's cross-examination of Gary Wang, the defense now seeks approval to query him about the involvement of FTX lawyers in these loans. Bankman-Fried's lawyers argue that the prosecution has already shown that FTX lawyers were responsible for the loans' structure and execution. The defense is also looking into introducing promissory notes that documented the loans to Wang.
The attorneys representing Sam Bankman-Fried are seeking legal clearance to explore the purported involvement of FTX lawyers in approving $200 million loans from Alameda, as sanctioned by Gary Wang. Previously, it was reported that an October 1 court verdict had provisionally prevented Bankman-Fried from attributing any fault to FTX lawyers alleged to have structured and approved Alameda-FTX loans. US Judge Lewis Kaplan endorsed the government's argument and decided Bankman-Fried’s representation would need prior authorization for any allusion to the participation of FTX lawyers during the trial.
Post the preliminary cross-examination of ex-FTX co-founder Gary Wang by prosecution on October 9, the defense now seeks approval to query Wang about the supposed involvement of FTX legal advisors in formulating loans provided to FTX by Alameda. A letter filed on October 9 underscored the government questioning Wang over a series of personal loans, amounting to $300 million from Alameda, which FTX utilized to support business investments. Wang also procured a Bahamian home using some of these funds. Wang claimed either Bankman-Fried or FTX lawyers had offered him loans he was subsequently instructed to endorse. Lawyers for Bankman-Fried argue that the prosecution has confirmed the existence and role of FTX lawyers in structuring and executing the loans and plan to conduct their questioning concerning the extent of FTX advisor participation.
The defense's request also holds the possibility of introducing promissory notes that encapsulated the loans to Wang, who has previously indicated that he didn't think FTX lawyers would force him into illegal contracts: “Mr. Wang's belief that these were real loans - facilitated by lawyers and witnessed in formal promissory notes having legitimate interest payment requirements - is significant in contradicting the claim that these were just bogus loans steered by Mr. Bankman-Fried to obscure the source of the funds.”
Cointelegraph reporter Ana Paula Pereira is on-site in New York documenting the Bankman-Fried trial. Her newest coverage from the Federal District Court in Manhattan highlights the defense’s attempt to depict Bankman-Fried as a young businessman who stumbled in the fast-paced environment of FTX and Alameda.
Published At
10/10/2023 11:12:13 AM
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