Bankman-Fried Bail Deal on Signal Use Rejected by Judge for Now

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 22: FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried leaves Manhattan Federal Court after his arraignment and bail hearings on December 22, 2022 in New York City. Bankman-Fried, who was indicted on December 9th and arrested 3 days later by Bahamas law enforcement at the request of U.S. prosecutors, consented to extradition to the U.S. where he is facing eight criminal counts of fraud, conspiracy and money-laundering offenses which includes making illegal political contributions. He is potentially facing life in prison if convicted. He was released on $250 million bond with the bail package requiring him to stay with his parents in California. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images) , Photographer: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Chris Dolmetsch, Bloomberg News

Feb 7, 2023

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(Bloomberg) -- Sam Bankman-Fried’s resolution of a dispute with prosecutors over his use of encrypted messaging apps and other communications with former FTX employees was rejected by a federal judge.

Bankman-Fried’s lawyers said in a letter to US District Judge Lewis Kaplan on Monday that they had come to an agreement with the government that their client wouldn’t use encrypted messaging apps like Signal, as part of his bail accord. The agreement allowed him to send regular texts, make Zoom and FaceTime calls and use use WhatsApp with monitoring technology. 

They asked the judge to adjourn a hearing on the issue that was scheduled for Thursday, but Kaplan declined on Tuesday, ordering the parties to appear before him for oral arguments on modifications to the bail package.

Read More: Bankman-Fried Agrees Not to Use Encrypted Apps While on Bail 

Bankman-Fried’s lawyers also said the parties had reached an agreement on a specific set of former FTX employees that their client would not contact. Prosecutors had previously sought to bar all contact, raising the possibility that Bankman-Fried might engage in witness tampering.

The FTX co-founder has pleaded not guilty to fraud charges over the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange.

The case is US v. Bankman-Fried, 22-cr-673, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

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