Following a dramatic court appearance in the Bahamas, Sam Bankman-Fried appears poised to travel to the United States to face criminal charges relating to the collapse of the bitcoin exchange FTX.

On Monday, a lawyer representing Mr. Bankman-Fried was quoted claiming that the disgraced FTX founder has consented to extradition to the United States.

A court session was halted earlier in the day because his attorneys deemed it premature for him to appear in court.

Jerone Roberts, Mr. Bankman-local Fried's defense attorney, told The New York Times that attorneys would prepare the required extradition documents.

The Times described Mr. Roberts as telling reporters, "Mr. Bankman-decision Fried's was motivated by his desire to make amends with his consumers."

It was initially unclear when the extradition could take place.

The court appearance occurred just one week after Mr. Bankman-attorneys Fried's announced their intention to contest his extradition.

The matter was due to be heard on February 8.

The revised position could expedite his transfer to the United States.

Once Mr. Bankman-Fried returns to the United States, his attorney can request his release on bail.

Last Monday, a separate judge in the Bahamas refused Mr. Bankman-bail Fried's plea because he posed a flight risk.

FTX customers attend court

Mr. Bankman-Fried arrived at the courts in a corrections-marked black van escorted by a SWAT vehicle and a police vehicle.

The police rushed him to a courthouse entrance in the courthouse's rear.

A small number of individuals who identified themselves as crypto enthusiasts or FTX clients attended the hearing.

Mr. Bankman-Fried will presumably be imprisoned, at least temporarily, in a federal detention center in Brooklyn if he is transferred to New York.

In recent years, other notable inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) have included the convicted sex offender and singer R. Kelly, the pharmaceutical company executive Martin Shkrelli, who was convicted of securities fraud, and the socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted of aiding the millionaire Jeffrey Epstein in sexually abusing children.

During Maxwell's time at the MDC, which houses approximately 1,600 inmates, her attorneys constantly protested to a judge that the facility was unclean and infested with cockroaches and rodents.

Three guards have been convicted of sexually abusing detainees in recent years.

Bankman-Fried facing life in jail

On Monday, Bahamian officials arrested Mr. Bankman-Fried at the request of the United States government.

US authorities believe that he played a pivotal role in FTX's quick demise and concealed its issues from the public and investors.

According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mr. Bankman-Fried illegally utilized investor funds to purchase real estate for himself and his family.

The 30-year-old man may spend the remainder of his life in prison.

Mr. Bankman-journey Fried's from crypto evangelist to pariah transpired with startling rapidity.

FTX filed for bankruptcy protection on November 11 after the company ran out of cash due to a bitcoin bank run.

Before his bankruptcy, Mr. Bankman-Fried was regarded by many in Washington and on Wall Street as a digital currency wunderkind, someone who could help mainstream them by working with policymakers to increase industry control and credibility.

Mr. Bankman-Fried was, at least on paper, worth tens of billions of dollars and invited celebrities such as US NFL star Tom Brady and former politicians such as Tony Blair and Bill Clinton to his seminars at Bahamas luxury resorts.

John Ray III, the new CEO of FTX, told a congressional committee on Tuesday that Mr. Bankman-actions Fried's lacked sophistication.