Bankrupt exchange FTX has filed a lawsuit against the parents of co-founder and ex-CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) to recover “millions of dollars” in misappropriated funds and property.
According to the statement, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried used their influence in the company for personal enrichment. As longtime professors at Stanford Law School, they did not promote the exchange but “helped rob it,” the complaint alleges.
The lawsuit does not specify the amount of alleged damage, but cites a number of cases of transfer of property. Thus, FTX paid $18.9 million for Blue Water, the rights to which were obtained by Bankman and Fried.
SBF’s father’s knowledge of tax laws and the intricate corporate structure of FTX Group facilitated the payment of a cash gift totaling $10 million from Alameda funds to him and his wife, the document alleges.
In addition, Bankman received millions of dollars from the exchange for his participation in Super Bowl advertising. However, the defendant “knew or should have known about the precarious financial condition” of FTX, the lawsuit states.
The SBF father was also accused of facilitating the embezzlement of group companies’ assets through donations and helping cover up a whistleblower complaint in September 2019.
Bankman’s annual salary as a senior adviser to the FTX fund was $200,000. He received $18 million in real estate in the Bahamas and $5.5 million in donations to Stanford University, the complaint says.
The lawsuit identified Barbara Fried as a “key person” in SBF’s political efforts. The MTG committee she heads handles donations to various campaigns and initiatives. The exchange allegedly transferred millions of dollars to the structure at Fried’s direct requests.
Earlier, journalists found out the role of SBF’s parents in building the FTX business empire.
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