The founder of FTX, the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, has been arrested in the Bahamas. The attorney general of the Caribbean nation said they had received notice from the US that criminal charges had been filed against Sam Bankman-Fried there.
The firm’s declaration of bankruptcy and Mr Bankman-Fried’s resignation have sparked calls for stronger regulation of the cryptocurrency industry.
The trading platform was unable to raise the funds to prevent its collapse as traders rushed to withdraw $6billion (£4.89billion) from FTX in just 72 hours.
Over a million customers across the world were using Mr Bankman-Fried’s services to buy assets such as Bitcoin.
Mr Bankman-Fried became known for saving smaller firms from bankruptcy and earned a reputation in the crypto world, where he had the nickname ‘SBF’.
However FTX collapsed in just three days after a series of allegations, but it is not yet known on what charges Mr Bankman-Fried has been arrested.
Police have only stated that he was brought in under charges of “Financial Offences” in the US and the Bahamas.
The office of The Bahamas Attorney General Ryan Pinder said: “As a result of the notification received, and the material provided therewith, it was deemed appropriate for the Attorney General to seek SBF’s arrest and hold him in custody pursuant to our nation’s Extradition Act.”
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In a number of interviews over the past few weeks Mr Bankman-Fried has admitted to risk management failures in his company but denied accusations of fraud.
FTX was founded in order to allow people to purchase cryptocurrencies using their pounds and dollars.
It had previously garnered praise for its easy-to-use interface and charged a small fee per each transaction.