Released on $250 million bail, disgraced FTX-founder Sam Bankman-Fried was pictured relaxing in the American Airlines Flagship Lounge at New York JFK on Thursday, then flying business class to San Francisco as he awaits trial on charges of fraud.
Sam Bankman-Fried Lives It Up In Business Class On American Airlines
The 30-year-old founder of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange and crypto hedge fund, has been indicted for fraud after FTX declared bankruptcy with over $1 billion “missing.” Bankman-Fried thought he was safe in the Bahamas, but was arrested there and later agreed to be extradited to the United States.
Bankman-Fried is independently wealthy and his parents, Barbara Fried and Joseph Bankman, were both professors at Stanford Law School (his mother retired in September) and have also enjoyed great financial success. Bail for Bankman-Fried was set at $250 million, with his parents guaranteeing it against the equity on their $4 million property in Stanford, California as well as their “considerable” other assets.
Released from custody, Bankman-Fried flew home to California to live under house arrest at his parent’s house and did so in luxury…courtesy of an American Airlines Airbus A321T in business class from New York (JFK) to San Francisco (SFO).
Bankman-Fried was first photographed relaxing in the American Airlines Flagship Lounge at JFK (now called the Greenwich Lounge), which is reserved for international business class and those traveling in business on premium transcontinental flights like from New York to Los Angeles or San Francisco.
One of my followers spotted SBF chilling at JFK airport last night and snapped some icon photos pic.twitter.com/0Lg6OdqZz8
— litquidity (@litcapital) December 23, 2022
Later, he was pictured engaging in a conversation with his seatmate onboard the A321, which has 2-2 lie-flat seating in business class.
SBF en route to his parents’ house. Beanie is an excellent disguise, ser. pic.twitter.com/NHZ8uZg24a
— Tiffany Fong (@TiffanyFong_) December 23, 2022
Who Cares?
So why does this matter? We are innocent until proven guilty in the USA and that is a great thing, but the bail system has always struck me as the sort of system that is egregiously stacked in favor of the financially well-off. I mean, have you got $250 million lying around?
With few exceptions, I don’t begrudge anyone for flying business class. With Bankman-Fried facing prison time, I can understand why he wanted one more jaunt in a forward cabin (no comment on the similarity of the onboard food and prison food).
Nevertheless, I find it interesting that accused of defrauding millions of users, many of their life savings, he would risk the optics of flying business class.
CONCLUSION
Sam Bankman-Fried is now under house arrest in Stanford after coming up with $250 in assets to meet bail. After being extradited from the Bahamas to the USA, Bankman-Fried flew to California in the comfort of American Airlines’ flagship business class, even taking time to relax in the lounge prior to the flight.
image: Eems1 / Reddit
It’s easy and fun when it is OPM! Unfortunately.
“We are guilty until proven innocent in the USA”
Freudian slip?
I take solace that at least he was stuck in a window seat.
Race is about much more than skin color. It is about a way of life. White people like SBF should always assume a BIPOC is different (read: better) than themselves. To presume sameness is to erase lived experience and generational trauma
lol
He’s not white tho. Perhaps it’s generational ignorant in your racist family?
I’d like to see the details of a $250M bond. Is it actually $250M, or 10% equivalent? Who has $250M laying around? I doubt his parents could put up the full amount. Someone else put up the bond anonymously? And I thought that under these circumstances, one’s assets are frozen. Someone else paying for his flight? I hate to see alleged criminals still enjoying these ways of life. And if it was me, I’d being trying to get to the west coast with as low of profile as possible.
They had to come up with “only” $250K cash.
..If he skips bail… then they call The Dawg. Then he is in trouble
Parents posted home…friends signed..Dollars handed over were ZERO.
“ guilty until proven innocent in the USA” haha
As an AA stockholder deeply in the hole, I’m just glad someone is actually PAYING for these overpriced seats. Assuming of course he doesn’t have millions of miles to use before he goes to jail.
@Dave, if he was traveling escorted by and for the FBI, they don’t necessarily have to really pay for anything. They just show up, they’re the FBI!!!
I like Japan’s system better (at least for multi million frauds): Guilty until proven guilty. Then maybe SBF will have to Ghosn his way out of the country.
The other guy looks like a Wall St. type. SBF must have been getting tips from him on the best room at Otisville Prison. And which guard can get you the finest California Pinot Noir’s delivered weekly.
You need to learn much more about how bail process works and the details of sbf’s. 250mm$ wasn’t lying around and no other assets were pledged besides a PROMISE to sell a house that someone has estimated to have a value of 4 mm$.
His bail documents have been leaked.
In the Bahamian legal system, he sits in a jail cell with 5 other inmates. In the US, he’s in the business lounge, flies business class and waits for trial at his parents $4M house. Something seems very wrong here.
And when convicted or works a deal goes to Otisville prison with a private room, good wifi, fitness centers and excellent libraries. He writes a book there that nets him a few million and plans his next grift when he’s released from the Spa Prison after four years.
I’m surprised he wasn’t banned from using a computer as part of the bail terms. Who knows what mischief he’ll be getting up to.
The Flaghsip Lounge at JFK does not exist anymore. As part of British Airways moving to T8 at JFK, there are a trio of new lounges: Chelsea, Soho and Greenwich. That is the Greenwich Lounge. [deleted]
Thanks Bobby. Spare us your smug tone, though, or we’ll just erase you altogether.
I struggle to find the smugness in his comment, Matt. Just statements of fact.
That’s because I deleted the smug part. I welcome constructive feedback and correction, as in the portion of the comment I left. What came after was not only unnecessarily immature (I leave those sorts of comments all the time) but a pathetic personal attack.
Why not show the comments in full? Also not sure calling Bob “Bobby” isn’t being smug or personal or whatever else you think the comments were towards you.
Dude, you should at least change your IP address.
I’m a sense, he is a rich guy doing rich guy things, no surprise there.
Yes the USA’s bail system has loads of inequity, but not anything I didn’t already expect.
The world is a wack place.
Can’t have the democrats’ biggest donor in jail now can we.
Stanford University is picking up much of his tab. Complete insanity.
I have not heard that before, and couldn’t find any mention of it. Could you kindly cite a source?
How much money did his parents donate to the Democratic Party? Yeah. That.
with Maxine leading the investigation — ridiculous
Meanwhile people are sitting in jail from January 6th with phony charges, have they received a speedy trial or bail yet? This jerk gets a slap on the hand because he gave millions to Democrats. Despicable.
hard to believe the USA still has political prisioners sitting in solitary confinement but here we are
To be fair and clear, SBF’s pre-trial release bond structure is the same offered anyone accused of a federal crime. Unlike most states, the federal government doesn’t require cash bail. A bond hearing is provided fairly quickly – same day or within a few days of arrest – to federal arrestees. If there are any accused Jan 6th insurrectionists still in jail, it is because they were denied bond (flight risk and/or danger to society), violated the terms of their bond/release, or no one stepped-up to guarantee it for them.
SEC counsel Berkowitz (CFTC) has resigned after being found to have accepted bribes from Sam Bankman-Fried of FTX.
That’s misinformation. Thus far, he was seen dining and being chummy with SBF, which is bad enough, and he should resign.
His parents, both of them, held positions on his company and got handsomely paid for it, hence they used part of the defrauded money to bail him out. Two tiered justice system, nay of us would be rotting in jail.