Former FTX boss Sam Bankman-Fried agrees to be extradited to US, says lawyer

Mr Bankman-Fried was escorted by corrections officers to the Magistrates' Court in the Bahamas

Sam Bankman-Fried, the former boss of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has agreed to be extradited from the Bahamas to the US to face charges.

US authorities have accused Mr Bankman-Fried of committing "one of the biggest financial frauds in US history".

FTX has filed for bankruptcy, leaving many people unable to withdraw funds.

The 30-year-old, who denies the allegations, has agreed to the extradition, according to an affidavit his defence lawyer read in court.

The affidavit, signed by Mr Bankman-Fried on 20 December, says he is agreeing to be extradited partly out of a "desire to make the relevant customers whole" - in other words, to try to help people get back some of their money.

According to a court filing, FTX owed its 50 largest creditors a total of almost $3.1bn (£2.5bn).

Mr Bankman-Fried was arrested on 12 December and the date of his extradition is unclear.

'House of cards'

Last week, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York said Mr Bankman-Fried used "tens of millions" in ill-gotten gains for illegal campaign contributions to Democrats and Republicans.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said the man formerly nicknamed the "King Of Crypto" had built a "house of cards on a foundation of deception".

However, Mr Bankman-Fried has sought to distance himself from accusations of illegal activity.

In a BBC News interview before his arrest, he said: "I didn't knowingly commit fraud. I don't think I committed fraud. I didn't want any of this to happen. I was certainly not nearly as competent as I thought I was."