Month: October 2023

Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel, and Brian Klein, partner at Waymaker, discuss the strategies that the defense and prosecution appear to be using, and why the testimonies from FTX software developer Adam Yedidia, FTX cofounder Gary Wang, and others to come will be so damaging for the defense.

The first week of the criminal trial of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried has come to a close, with his former friends and FTX colleagues Adam Yedidia and Gary Wang delivering powerful testimonies that are forming the foundations for the prosecution’s arguments — arguments that the defense may have a difficult time surmounting. Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel, and Brian Klein, partner at Waymaker, discuss Alameda’s special privileges coded into the FTX software, the reason why a scorched FTX customer may have been chosen as the first witness, and why upcoming key witnesses are going to be a “real problem” for the defense.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights | 

• What we learned about the prosecution and defense’s strategies after the first week of the trial
• How the jury being mostly non-finance professionals may impact deliberations
• Why Brian believes someone “out of the mainstream” would make an ideal juror for the defense
• Why Sam believes the defense’s opening was stronger than the prosecution’s
• Which arguments may be the most difficult for Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyers to defend
• Why the defense’s “building a plane as you’re flying” analogy may come back to hurt them in closing
• Why Sam believes the order of the witness testimony so far is helping the prosecution build the foundation of its case
• Whether Adam Yedidia’s testimony was effective at establishing him as a credible witness
• Whether the fact that some witnesses are cooperating to avoid prison time will impact the jury’s decision
• What Gary Wang, former CTO of FTX, revealed about Alameda's special privileges coded into FTX software and how it wasn’t an “oversight”
• Whether Judge Kaplan is growing impatient with the defense
• Whether the prosecution's objections were sustained reasonably by Judge Kaplan
• Why upcoming insider witnesses pose a “real problem” to the defense
• Why Gary Wang, Nishad Sigh, and Caroline Ellison could very well serve no prison time
• Why it's "not even an open question" that the defense team will appeal if they lose the case

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Guest: | 

Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel

Previous appearance on Unchained: SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case

Brian Klein, partner at Waymaker

Previous appearance on Unchained: SBF Behind Bars: Why Revoked Bail Is a Big Deal for Crypto’s Biggest Trial

Links | 

Previous coverage by Unchained on the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried:

Sam Bankman-Fried Trial: Here's Everything That Happened So Far

SBF Trial, Day 1: Possible Witnesses Include FTX Insiders, Big Names in Crypto, and SBF’s Family

SBF Trial, Day 2: DOJ Says Sam Bankman-Fried ‘Lied’ While Defense Claims His Actions Were ‘Reasonable’

SBF Trial, Day 3: Why a True Believer in FTX Flipped Once He Learned One Fact

SBF Trial, Day 4: SBF’s Lawyers Annoy Judge Kaplan, While Wang Reveals Alameda’s Special Privileges

Did Sam Bankman-Fried Have Intent to Defraud FTX Investors?

Here’s How Sam Bankman-Fried’s High-Stakes Trial Could Play Out

SBF Trial: How Sam Bankman-Fried’s Lawyers Might Try and Win His Case

The High-Stakes Trial of Sam Bankman-Fried Begins: What to Expect

In the SBF Case, Elite Corruption Is What’s Really on Trial

Business Insider: 

Sam Bankman-Fried deleted his tweet saying FTX 'assets are fine' on the day he announced his Binance deal

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Unchained Podcast is Produced by Laura Shin Media, LLC.  Distributed by CoinDesk. Senior Producer is Michele Musso and Executive Producer is Jared Schwartz. 

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How does the Palestinian militant group justify the atrocities committed in Israel? Why has it done this? What does it plan to do with the hostages? In a conversation with Moussa Abu Marzouk, a senior official, Zanny Minton Beddoes, The Economist's editor-in-chief, presses for answers.

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Alabama

• College students from Alabama stuck in Israel
• Alabama Rep. Ensler is angry at Senators Britt and Tuberville for blaming Hamas attack on Biden
• Former CIA director calls on Senator Tuberville to be removed "from the human race"
• Medical marijuana industry is gearing up in Alabama
• The Scottsboro BBQ fest is this Saturday, October 14

National

• Netanyahu promises Israel will win the war with Hamas & Lt. Gen. Jerry Boykin offers his perspective on how the attack happened
• Chris Mitchell reports from Israel
• Rand Paul has evidence Fauci lied, suggests jailtime