Sam Bankman-Fried's Legal Team Seeks Clarification on Charity and Bankruptcy Claims

The trial for Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the collapsed FTX crypto exchange, is set to commence on Tuesday. His defense team is strategizing the range of arguments they might present.

Bankman-Fried's defense seeks clarity from the U.S. judge overseeing the case regarding specific points they can raise during the trial. They are particularly interested in understanding if they can argue that FTX, a major crypto exchange that collapsed last year, was not subject to U.S. regulations, while FTX.US did adhere to applicable rules. Additionally, they want to know if Bankman-Fried can discuss the potential for FTX creditors to secure significant recoveries in the exchange's ongoing bankruptcy case, and if he can mention his charitable contributions and philanthropic endeavors.

The defense also expressed concerns about the Department of Justice's intention to introduce evidence related to an alleged illegal campaign finance scheme.

Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled in favor of the DOJ earlier this month, granting prosecutors' motions to prevent Bankman-Fried from making certain arguments at trial. The defense is now disputing this, emphasizing that their objections to the DOJ's motions contained arguments or details in footnotes that clarified their position.

The filing also seeks clarification about the extent to which the defense can present their arguments in light of the judge's ruling.

This filing follows a recent decision by the judge that Bankman-Fried cannot bring up his planned "advice of counsel" defense during his opening statements. However, he left the possibility open for the defense to raise these points later, provided they notify the court and the prosecution.

The trial is slated to kick off on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. ET, commencing with voir dire, or jury selection. Prosecutors anticipate this process to take no longer than a day, suggesting that opening arguments could start as early as October 4.

Read more: Unveiling the Drama Unfolding: Sam Bankman-Fried's High-Stakes Crypto Trial