Lawyers for the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX's former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), have asked the court to issue a gag order for witnesses in his case. The move followed a gag order against SBF after he spoke to a reporter about the former CEO of Alameda Research, Caroline Ellison. If approved, the order will restrict the witnesses in the case from disclosing any information about the lawsuit to the public before SBF's trial in October. - The gag order against SBF was issued over the court's concerns around the potential of his recent comments to influence the jury pool that would sit in the trial.
- In response, SBF's lawyers argued that the article contrarily had negative references for the former FTX CEO and positive references for Ellison.
- The legal team also claimed that the court unfairly targeted SBF without restricting comments from other parties, asking for another gag order for all the witnesses.
- Other witnesses include the U.S. government, former FTX employees, FTX's current CEO John J. Ray III, FTX's debtor entities, and Alameda Research.
FTX, previously the third-largest crypto exchange, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2022, with all the 130 entities under the roof of FTX Group. - The downfall followed the claims that SBF used customer funds in FTX to compensate for losses at the sister company Alameda Research.
- SBF will appear in court in October to defend himself against eight charges, including money laundering and misappropriation of customer funds, to which he pleaded not guilty.
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