Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial resumed on Monday morning, with former FTX engineering director Nishad Singh beginning to testify.
Singer called the FTX founder “an awe-inspiring figure,” “talented” and “intimidating,” and the two first met Bankman-Fried in high school but didn’t become friends until later . Singer later joined Alameda Research as a software engineer under Bankman-Fried’s leadership as CEO.
However, their relationship soured over time, as Singer’s “respect for him gradually eroded over time when he proved untrustworthy.” More specifically, Singer said Bankman-Fried “spent a lot of Alameda’s money” and called his spending patterns “excessive.”
The jury was then presented with a spreadsheet documenting several high-profile endorsement deals, including the now-infamous $205 million renaming of Miami-Dade Stadium to FTX Stadium. Likewise, FTX spent $150 million to gain recognition from Major League Baseball.
Additionally, the spreadsheet shows the company paid $50 million to Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen for endorsement deals and potential philanthropy. Brady and Bundchen are just a few of the names on the spreadsheet, along with Larry David, Steph Curry and Kevin O’Leary, who received $10 million, $28 million and $14 million respectively endorsement contract.
Singer was increasingly concerned about the amount of money Bankman-Fried was spending on establishing partnerships with high-profile individuals, most notably K5 Global co-founders Bryan Baum and Michael Kives.
In a company email, Bankman-Fried detailed a dinner he attended in 2022 hosted by Keeves. Bankman-Fried wrote that the dinner brought together “some of the most impressive people I have ever met,” including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and Oscar Award winner Leonardo DiCaprio.
Bankman-Fried wrote: “I think if we asked them to schedule a dinner with us, Elon Musk, Barack Obama, Rihanna and Mark Zuckerberg, they would probably Agreed.” He calls K5 Global a “one-stop shop” for developing important relationships.
When Bankman-Fried issued a term sheet offering more than $100 million in bonuses to K5 Global, Singh asked the FTX founder to use his own money to fund the effort because he feared “partnering with K5 would be damaging to the company.”
Bankman-Fried is a self-described efficient altruist and is widely reported to be motivated by giving away as much money as possible. However, Bankman-Fried lived with nine FTX and Alameda employees in a luxury $35 million penthouse in the Bahamas, which he supplemented with FTX client funds.
When Singer and some other employees expressed concerns to Bankman-Fried about the “ostentatious” nature of the apartment, Bankman-Fried said he would pay “$100 million to make this farce go away.” “. Ultimately, Singer took this to mean that he should “shut up” and acceded to the demands of the now-disgraced “King of Cryptocurrency.”
At one point, Bankman-Fried shook his head when Singer testified that the defendant displayed Alameda Research’s balance sheet on a computer monitor on his desk.
Singer’s testimony is the latest in a series of former Alameda and FTX employees to testify against Bankman-Fried. If convicted, Bankman-Fried faces 110 years in prison.
Cryptonews.com Reporter Julia Smith are present at the court and will report daily on the proceedings.
(email protected)