The highly anticipated criminal trial for Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, started Tuesday to determine whether he’s guilty of seven counts of fraud and conspiracy. And as one former federal prosecutor put it: “The odds seem to be stacked against him at this point.”
The 31-year-old co-founded FTX in 2019; within a few years the once third-largest crypto exchange’s valuation hit $32 billion at its peak. It’s now trying to claw back any funds to distribute to creditors.
But how did the once third-largest crypto exchange get here?
