Sam Bankman-Fried: Crypto rock star facing life in jail

Bankman-Fried (2nd from left) is led away handcuffed by officers of the Royal Bahamas Police Force in Nassau, Bahamas on Dec 13, 2022. Disgraced cryptocurrency tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried was hit with multiple criminal charges on Dec 13, 2022, accused of committing one of the biggest financial frauds in US history. Bankman-Fried will serve time at The Bahamas Department of Corrections until Feb 8, 2023. — AFP

WASHINGTON: Sam Bankman-Fried has had a dizzying fall from top of the heap in the world of cryptocurrencies to staring down a hefty jail sentence on a raft of fraud charges.

The 30-year-old billionaire founder of the FTX crypto exchange once partnered with celebrities and rubbed shoulders with politicians as he tried to legitimise cryptocurrency as more than just a shady get-rich-quick scheme.