Unchained - SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family

Episode Date: October 4, 2023

Laura reports on a noticeably composed Bankman-Fried and delves into the jury de-selection process, revealing potential jurors with surprising crypto ties. The government's stance on a plea deal is finally clarified, and a long list of potential witnesses from the crypto world is unveiled. Tune in to get the latest updates and insights on a case that could have far-reaching implications for the crypto industry. If you need to catch up, don’t miss our recent coverage on the trial: Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi everyone, Laura here. Tuesday, October 3rd was the first day of the criminal trial of the United States against Sam Bankman-Fried. Unchained will be bringing you quick recaps of each day of the trial, and you can find our coverage not just on the podcast and on video, but also in our newsletter and on our website. Before the proceedings, Bankman-Freed sat with counsel on either side, noticeably thinner than he had looked previously, and his hair recently shorned so his current seemed less unkempt than his signature look. He was also noticeably less jittery than normal. I did not see him shake his leg at all. He had a laptop and sometimes appeared to be scrolling via the trackpad.

At one point, Judge Kaplan addressed SBF directly and said, quote, Mr. Bankman-Fried, I want to make sure this is something that you understand. You have the right to testify in your own defense in this case, and the decision as to whether or not you testify is a decision solely for you. You are entitled to have your counsel's best advice on whether they think it is wise or potentially advantageous or not advantageous for you to testify, but they can't make the decision for you. It is your call. While the defense has not yet indicated whether Bankman-Fried will testify, he has gone against most legal advice thus far and given numerous media interviews about what happened at FTX. We'll see whether he continues to be as loquacious under oath.

Just after this, the government put on the record whether or not a plea offer had a event. existed and said, quote, the government early on in the case, after the case was charged, raised the question of whether the parties should engage in plea discussions, and the answer was no, meaning there were no discussions about a plea, and the government never made any plea offers. For those of you who listened to the Tuesday episode with Kvon Sadeghi and Samson Enzer, this answers one of the questions that I've had ever since Caroline Ellison, Gary Wong, and Nasjad Singh all pleaded guilty. Why it was that this case went to trial rather than ending in a plea deal. During this period before the jury selection

process, the government mentioned that it wanted to ask whether jurors had seen one specific pre-trial news story, which they called, quote, the CBS special, and which was later revealed to be the 60 Minutes interview with author Michael Lewis, which aired Sunday and has been seen as somewhat sympathetic to Bankman Freed. Once the proceedings got going, the theme for day one was what recent Unchained guest Samson Enzer mentioned jury deselection. The judge posed round after round of questions to prospective jurors meant to weed out those who either had conflicts preventing them from serving or who for reasons pertaining to their professional position, personal experience, or other factors could not remain impartial. This process did create moments of hilarity, at least for the

reporters in the press room. For instance, one prospective juror said that he was currently unemployed and that his lack of income, plus a six-week delay in his job search, would be a hardship. Judge Kaplan asked him what he did for a living, and he responded, Commodities trader. Judge Kaplan himself was both firm about the purpose of the trial and the duty of the jurors, while also exhibiting both patience and a wry sense of humor. A prospective juror who said she could not participate because she was scheduled to fly to Maui before the trial's projected end, ended up admitting that she was going to be in Maui for six

months because she lives there half the year. Judge Kaplan asked her if she could just delay a week. Numerous jurors had already heard about or read about FTX. One potential juror works at Insight Partners, a VC firm that had invested in FTX in Alameda. Another said he had processed claims for the victims of Bernie Madoff, and numerous others said that they had invested in crypto, and all of those said that they had lost money in it, including a man who said his twin brother had nearly been financially ruined from those losses. The government. government read aloud a long list of potential witnesses for both the defense and the prosecution to prevent any jurors with conflicts or ties relating to those people or organizations.

Aside from one of the predictable names, such as Caroline Ellison, Gary Wong, and Ashad Singh, some other FDX executives named included Ryan Miller, Romnik Aurora, Constance Wong, Dan Friedberg, and Sam Tribuko. While other names and organizations known in the crypto world included Anthony Scaramucci, Zach Prince, Genesis, Paradigm, Sequoia, layer zero and Ribbic Capital. SPF's parents and brother were also named. The day ended with 50 remaining possible jurors. On Wednesday, Judge Kaplan will narrow it down to 12 jurors with six alternates,

and we should see opening statements in both sides, with the government projecting its opening to be 25 to 30 minutes, and the defense, 35 to 40 minutes. More to come tomorrow.