CoinMarketCap News, Mar 28: SBF is Now Facing 13 Charges. The Newest One Involves a Bribe

The charges are piling up against Sam Bankman-Fried. FTX's embattled founder has now been accused of paying a $40 million bribe to Chinese government officials. It's alleged that, in exchange, frozen accounts holding $1 billion in crypto were unlocked. The incident dates back to early 2021, and U.S. officials say that SBF and others "considered and tried numerous methods to unfreeze the accounts or otherwise to regain access to the cryptocurrency in the accounts." It's alleged that the multimillion-dollar transaction occurred in November 2021 — and around that time, the accounts were unfrozen. The crypto was subsequently used to fund Alameda Research's trading activity.

Binance's CEO has described a new civil complaint filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as "unexpected and disappointing." The regulator has claimed that the exchange broke U.S. derivatives rules and should have been registered with the agency years ago. Changpeng Zhao has said the complaint "appears to contain an incomplete recitation of facts" — and he disagrees with how many of the issues have been characterized. The CFTC alleges that Binance's compliance program has been "ineffective" — but CZ says his trading platform is the first global, non-U.S. exchange to implement a mandatory KYC program. CZ also denied that Binance engages in manipulating the market.

Do Kwon is being held in medical quarantine following his shock arrest in Montenegro. According to Bloomberg, officials want to rule out that he has coronavirus. The Terra co-founder will remain there until April 3 — and until that time, only his lawyer or a doctor will be able to pay him a visit. Bloomberg's report went on to reveal that he is in good health and hasn't made any special requests while he's in detention. Kwon's arrest came 10 months after the sudden collapse of LUNA and UST wiped $40 billion from the crypto markets — firing the starting gun on a slew of bankruptcies. While he has long insisted that he wasn't on the run, he had refused to reveal his location — apparently over fears for his safety.

A man who stole over 50,000 BTC from the SIlk Road marketplace is asking to be spared from prison. The crypto stash was seized in November 2021 from the home of James Zhong. It had been hidden in an underground safe and on a single-board computer concealed under blankets in a popcorn tin stored in a bathroom closet. Zhong pleaded guilty after charges were brought, and told the judge his cooperation should be taken into account. Other factors raised by Zhong included the fact he is autistic and had a difficult childhood, with the defendant arguing that the crime didn't actually have a victim. He had managed to trick Silk Road's systems into letting him withdraw Bitcoin that he wasn't entitled to. Sentencing is on April 14.

MicroStrategy has revealed that it has ended a loan agreement with Silvergate Bank — repaying $161 million in order to be reunited with 34,619 BTC. The news, confirmed in a filing to the SEC, comes weeks after the financial institution announced that it was voluntarily winding down operations. In other developments, MicroStrategy has also confirmed that it's bought 6,455 BTC for $150 million — an average price of $23,238 per coin. The investments took place between February 16 and March 23 — and indicate that the publicly listed company remains determined to beef up its Bitcoin reserves. At the current price of $27,000, this means MicroStrategy has already made a paper profit of $24.2 million. Overall, the firm now owns 138,955 BTC.

Disney is abandoning its ambitions for the metaverse as the entertainment giant prepares to slash 7,000 jobs in the next two months. According to The Wall Street Journal, a small team had been working on strategies related to virtual worlds in an attempt to deliver next-generation storytelling and consumer experiences. It had been hoped that Disney's rich library of intellectual property could be used to reinvigorate classic stories and allow consumers to enjoy them in new ways. The report suggests about 50 people from this unit are leaving the company. Bob Iger — who recently returned as Disney's CEO — has spoken publicly about how he's bullish on the metaverse, describing it as "the next great storytelling frontier."

The U.K. has abandoned plans to launch its own non-fungible token. Last year, the government had revealed that the Royal Mint — which issues the country's coins — was set to release a crypto collectible by the summer of 2022. But the ambitious plans have been beset by months of delays, with a punishing bear market also denting the crypto industry's image. Harriet Baldwin, the chair of the Treasury Select Committee, told the BBC: "We have not yet seen a lot of evidence that our constituents should be putting their money in these speculative tokens unless they are prepared to lose all their money. So perhaps that is why the Royal Mint has made this decision in conjunction with the Treasury."