Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, will have a hearing on Wednesday in a Bahamian court on his possible extradition US in the coming days to face criminal charges related to the collapse of the company, a source familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.
The source spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak on the record. In a court in Nassau, Bahamas, on Monday, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers said he had agreed to be extradited to the US, but the necessary paperwork had not yet been written up.
According to Reuters, Proceedings of the court hearing are set to resume on Wednesday after he signed papers paving the way for his extradition to the United States, where he faces fraud charges.
It was not immediately clear when Bankman-Fried’s extradition could occur once it is approved by the Bahamian court.
Bahamian authorities arrested Bankman-Fried last week at the request of the US government.
US prosecutors allege he played a central role in the rapid collapse of FTX and hid its problems from the public and investors. The Securities and Exchange Commission said Bankman-Fried illegally used investors’ money to buy real estate on behalf of himself and his family.
The 30-year-old could potentially spend the rest of his life in jail.
Bankman-Fried was denied bail Friday after a Bahamian judge ruled that he posed a flight risk. The founder and former CEO of FTX, once worth tens of billions of dollars on paper, is being held in the Bahamas’ Fox Hill prison, which has been cited by human rights activists as having poor sanitation and as being infested with rats and insects.
Once he’s back in the US, Bankman-Fried’s attorney will be able to request that he be released on bail.