Insider: Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried arrested in the Bahamas

Bahamian authorities arrested Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO and founder of crypto exchange platform FTX, on Monday, the US Attorney's Office Southern District of New York confirmed on social media. 

"Earlier this evening, Bahamian authorities arrested Samuel Bankman-Fried at the request of the U.S. Government, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY," the tweet said. "We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morning and will have more to say at that time."

"The Bahamas and the United States have a shared interest in holding accountable all individuals associated with FTX who may have betrayed the public trust and broken the law," Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Davis said in a press release from the Bahamas Office of the Attorney General.

The Royal Bahamas Police Force, the Office of the Attorney General, and the Ministry of Legal Affairs did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Though Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas, where he currently resides, prosecutors could have the legal tools to extradite him to the US, according to experts. 

Bankman-Fried's arrest comes after FTX and its affiliate companies filed for bankruptcy in mid-November after a spectacular collapse that sent ripple effects throughout the entire cryptocurrency world.

Bankman-Fried and his associates face allegations that they illegally misused FTX customer funds to prop up Bankman-Fried's crypto-trading firm, Alameda Research, resulting in the loss of billions of dollars in customer funds. 

Bankman-Fried had been on somewhat of a media tour since FTX's implosion and recently told the New York Times's Andrew Ross Sorkin that he "wasn't trying to commingle funds" between FTX and Alameda Research. 

Bankman-Fried was expected to testify before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday. It is unclear whether that will occur as scheduled. 

Source: Insider