Financial Services Chair McHenry Continues Investigation into SBF Arrest with Second SEC Request

The leadership of the United States House of Representatives Financial Services Committee is continuing to press Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler for records related to the arrest of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried.

Committee chair Patrick McHenry and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee chair Rep. Bill Huizenga sent a sharply worded letter to Gensler on Feb. 10, demanding records and communications between and among both the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, the Office of the Chair, and the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Bankman-Fried was scheduled to appear before the Financial Services Committee, but his arrest prevented him from testifying. The SEC has missed deadlines for submitting the documents requested, and SEC staff provided 232 pages of documents that were publicly available and not responsive to the request.

In a new letter, the legislators have set a new deadline for select documents of April 17, warning that failure to produce the requested information could result in the Committee considering using a compulsory process, if necessary, to obtain the requested information.

The letter was attached with 14 pages of instructions “for the purpose of this Request” for producing the material the congressmen had requested.

The committee has expressed dissatisfaction with the SEC’s response, and the legislators are demanding greater transparency regarding the timing of the charging and arrest of Bankman-Fried.

The lawmakers believe that the SEC’s lack of cooperation has impeded the committee’s work and are considering using legal means to obtain the requested information.