Lawyer says Sam Bankman-Fried is unlikely to be offered a plea deal by the prosecution

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The former CEO of FTX may not be able offset the two wire fraud charges and six conspiracy charges he faces with the credits. He could plead guilty to both of these counts. News Ho-hoo! Get a Limited Holiday Trait Bankman-Fried will appear in court in January to enter into a plea agreement. However, Mark Kasten, counsel in Buchanan Ingersoll and Rooney’s Blockchain and Crypto Assets group, said that Bankman-Fried is unlikely to receive a favorable deal. Kasten explained to Cointelegraph that the government often requires defendants in criminal prosecutions to help them receive a cooperation credit. Kasten said that it was unlikely that Bankman Friedrich can point the finger at anyone. Kasten also suggested that Bankman Friedrich might enter into an agreement similar in nature to Caroline Ellison or Gagy Wang. This means that “prosecutors didn’t agree to recommend a sentence”, Kasten noted, leaving the sentence up to the judge. Related: FTX customers file a class-action lawsuit to obtain priority reparations. Among the charges against Bankman-Fried are conspiracy to defraud customers, lenders, securities fraud and commodities fraud and conspiracy to violate campaign finance law. He could spend 115 years in prison if convicted. John Ray, who was CEO of FTX in bankruptcy proceedings, stated to the United States House Financial Services Committee that he’d never seen “such an utter failure of corporate control at every level of an organisation, from the absence of financial statements to a complete failure or any internal controls or governance whatsoever.” Ray also pointed out that the collapse of the exchange was due to “concentration” of control in the hands a small number of “grossly inexperienced, unsophisticated individuals. Bankman-Fried will be heard by Judge Lewis Kaplan in the Southern District of New York on Jan. 3. Kaplan is a judge known for being straight forward and efficient. After Ronnie Abrams, the judge, resigned due conflicts of interest, Kaplan was assigned the case. Abrams’ husband is a partner in Davis Polk & Wardwell. This law firm advised FTX from 2021.