Crypto Market Overview December 20th | Dex-Trade
SBF Agrees to Extradition to the US
The former CEO of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), has agreed to extradition to the United States, where he faces a series of criminal charges from government agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Sources at CNN quoted Bahamas SBF lawyer Jeron Roberts as confirming that the founder of the infamous crypto exchange “has agreed to be voluntarily extradited to the United States of America,” where prosecutors are seeking a total of more than 100 years in prison. According to Roberts, the next appearance of the SBF in court will be associated with the completion of the extradition process, which should take place today. However, the lawyer also said that the former CEO of the crypto exchange could be extradited literally immediately after the court session. According to him, the SBF's decision was dictated by his intentions to "put the customers right." Recall that in the United States, Sam faces numerous charges from several government agencies, including the SEC, the Commodity and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and the Department of Justice. He is accused of embezzlement of clients' funds, embezzlement and a number of other financial crimes. If the court decides positively on all sentences, the SBF can be sentenced to up to 115 years.
Boris Johnson's Brother Steps Down as Bitfinity Advisor
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's brother, Baron Joseph Edmund Johnson, has resigned as an advisor to Binance's subsidiary Bifinity, which is lobbying to promote the opening of a local unit of Binance UK. Johnson was an advisor to the payment technology company founded by Binance, which was launched in March of this year. He has held the position since September but stepped down last week. It is assumed that the reason for the resignation was the growing demands for transparency from the parent cryptocurrency exchange. British regulators banned Binance from providing financial services in the country in June 2021. The UK Financial Conduct Authority said the firm did not have permission to provide regulated services. In turn, Binance requested the proper regulatory licenses in November, however, the request is still under review. Binance CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), defended the company's finances, saying the firm has "assets to convert" and has no loans or liabilities. But conservative UK regulators appear to be unimpressed by the crypto giant's law-abiding nature.
