The lawyer questions Sam Bankman-Fried about his political donations

Former FTX CEO reportedly said donations made in his name came from “Alameda Research loans” as part of efforts to influence US crypto regulations.

Mark Cohen, defense attorney for Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, heard testimony from the former FTX CEO about his relationship with Caroline Ellison and political donations made by the crypto exchange. Bankman-Fried said in court on Oct. 27 that he had not discussed donations to U.S. politicians with Nishad Singh, former chief technology officer of FTX, and Ryan Salame, former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets. According to SBF, the donations made in his name came from “Alameda Research loans” as part of efforts to influence US government policies on crypto regulation.

"I thought politics mattered. Congress and the executive branch... Some were [supportive of] FTX for lobbying cryptocurrencies. Some, not most."

Additionally, Cohen asked more personal questions seemingly unrelated to the charges SBF is facing in court. The defense attorney asked Bankman-Fried what led to the end of her relationship with Ellison.

“She wanted more than I could give her,” the former FTX CEO reportedly responded, referring to Ellison. "It wasn't the first time with me." During her testimony, Ellison said the relationship ended because SBF "didn't spend a lot of time" with her. Cohen asked the former FTX CEO the reasons for his style, and SBF responded that the hair was the result of his "laziness", while he found it "comfortable" to wear shorts and t-shirts on most occasions.

On October 27, in a first testimony, the former CEO allegedly denied having defrauded FTX users by directing Alameda's activities and allowing it to use customer funds. Gary Wang, FTX's former chief technology officer, and others testified that SBF gave Alameda the ability to negotiate more funds than it had available. Bankman-Fried's testimony will likely conclude early next week after cross-examination by U.S. Justice Department lawyers. Unless motions or legal snags are addressed, the court will likely task the jury with deliberating the seven criminal charges.