Judge to weigh changes to FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s bail terms 

A judge is set to hear arguments regarding FTX cryptocurrency founder Sam Bankman-Fried‘s bail terms ahead of his trial for fraud. 

The judge is expected to weigh whether the alleged scammer will be allowed to contact employees of the companies he once ran while he is out on bail. 

It comes after US District Judge Lewis Kaplan temporarily barred Bankman-Fried from making contact with employees from FTX or Alameda Research, his former hedge fund. 

The decision was made after prosecutors argued that the 30-year-old may attempt to use his fortune and influence to influence witnesses.

Bankman-Fried is facing federal charges for fraud following the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange FTX. He pleaded not guilty to the charges on January 3. 

Bankman-Fried is set to go on trial for fraud charges, which he has pleaded not guilty to

Judge Kaplan temporarily barred the crypto billionaire from speaking to his former employees as a condition to his release on a $250 million bond. 

They also prevented Bankman-Fried from using messaging apps that allow users to auto-delete messages until he next faces federal court. 

Lawyers for the alleged fraudster have argued that previous attempts to contact the current chief executive and counsel for now-bankrupt FTX were attempts to offer ‘assistance’ to his former business.

They denied he was attempting to interfere with the investigation, which has seen several limitations placed on his ability to communicate ahead of his trial. 

Bankman-Fried’s lawyers claimed on court papers on Monday that they had agreed a deal with prosecutors to exempt certain individuals from the no-contact order placed on the 30-year-old, reports Reuters. 

They said he will be allowed to use some apps including Zoom and WhatsApp on the condition he installed monitoring technology onto his phone.