SBF Unfairly Painted as ‘Villain,’ Lawyer Says in Closing (2)

Sam Bankman-Fried has been unfairly cast as a “villain” and a “monster” in a movie about a grand fraud scheme, his lawyer said Wednesday, insisting that the FTX co-founder made mistakes, but didn’t commit crimes.

In closing arguments in Bankman-Fried’s month-long fraud trial, the prosecution and defense presented their dueling views of the former crypto wunderkid. To the government, Bankman-Fried masterminded a “pyramid of deceit” built on lies and false promises that led to the costly collapse of FTX and its affiliated hedge fund Alameda Research.

In contrast, the defense painted Bankman-Fried as an awkward math nerd with bad ...