Hayden Adams, the founder of Uniswap, one of the world’s largest decentralized exchanges (DEXes), thinks the jury was right to find Sam Bankman-fried, also known as SBF, the disgraced founder of FTX, a now-defunct exchange, guilty on all seven charges brought forward by the prosecution.
SBF’s Guilty Verdict Is Correct: But Not Time To Celebrate
Taking to X on November 3, Adams, one of the influential figures in decentralized finance (DeFi), said though the jury might be correct in their decision, it might not be the right time to celebrate. The founder explained that the FTX bankruptcy not only led to users losing billions, but the industry took a massive reputational hit.
In Adams’ view, the few winners in this case are the lawyers involved and the various crypto opponents the founder didn’t mention.
The collapse of FTX in November 2022 marked a dark history in crypto. Happening at the tail-end of what was already a challenging year for leading assets like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), the fall of FTX caught the community mostly unawares.
Days before the then-popular exchange declared bankruptcy, Alameda Research and Caroline Ellison, one of the top executives associated with FTX, said they were willing to buy back FTT, the crypto token issued by FTX.
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) pressed charges against FTX and Sam Bankman-fried weeks after they declared bankruptcy. The DOJ charged Bankman-Fried with several charges, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.
The SEC said Bankman-Fried orchestrated a scheme to defraud investors and customers. Of note, the regulator said Bankman-Fried misled investors about the health of FTX and its trading wing, Alameda Research. The former FTX boss pleaded not guilty to all charges.
FTX Collapse Is A Lesson To Crypto
After four weeks in a trial that began in early October, Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty of seven criminal counts. However, the official sentencing will be in March 2024. The former FTX founder could face a maximum possible sentence of 115 years in prison.
Following this verdict, Adams said, learning from the FTX collapse, the industry should focus on technology and the sphere’s values, mainly revolving around building decentralized systems that are open, auditable, yet secure. To stay safe, the Uniswap founder said crypto users should easily pick out “personality cult sociopaths,” which enabled Sam Bankman-Fried to thrive before being caught after FTX fell.
Feature image from Canva, chart from TradingView