Many users file lawsuits against Sam Bankman-Fried

Sam Bankman-Fried has become the subject of numerous lawsuits and investigations following the collapse of FTX crypto exchange.

Many class-action suits have been filed against the former FTX CEO, with the most recent being filed on April 22.

These lawsuits range from claims of market manipulation to fraud, and are separate from the ongoing investigations into the company and SBF.

Along with the Federal Election Commission’s likely investigation into Bankman-Fried’s dark money donations to the Republican Party, SBF has been under intense scrutiny for his role in the collapse of FTX.

Gregg Podalsky and four other former FTX customers have brought a class action lawsuit against celebrities Tom Brady, Kevin O’Leary, Stephen Curry, Trevor Lawrence and Shaquille O’Neal, Bankman-Fried and other FTX executives for fraudulently inducing “unsophisticated investors” into purchasing unregistered securities in the form of yield-bearing accounts.

Podalsky and the other plaintiffs seek a jury trial. Michael Elliott Jessup, another FTX customer, has also brought a class action lawsuit alleging fraud, unjust enrichment and conversion against SBF, former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison and other FTX executives.

Unjust enrichment refers to situations where one person is enriched at the expense of another, and conversion refers to when one person ‘converts’ another person’s property for themselves.

Jessup claims that customers of FTX had rightful possession of their crypto assets, and that the defendants transferred these assets to Alameda Research without their authority — a violation of their rights. Jessup also requests a jury trial.

In California, Russell Hawkins, a FTX customer, filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of customers who were allegedly misled by unfair and deceptive practices.

Plaintiff Stephen Pierce has followed suit and filed a class action lawsuit in California, accusing Bankman-Fried of engaging in one of the “great frauds of history”, treating customer funds as a slush fund to fund their own investments and personal boondoggles.

Pierce is demanding a jury trial and alleging that the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) has been violated.

Sunil Kavuri has filed a similar class action lawsuit in Florida, which includes public figures who have endorsed FTX without disclosing their payment or stake in the company.

Kavuri is alleging that FTX were promoting unregistered securities which were fraudulently presented as securities in order to attract customers and generate interest. The Securities and Exchange Commission may be keeping a close eye on this case.