Stanford University says it will return all gifts from bankrupt crypto
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After a lawsuit against Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents alleged that Stanford University received millions of dollars in donations from bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, Stanford University said it will return all donations it received from the exchange “in their entirety.”

FTX Foundation and its related companies gave Stanford the gifts “for pandemic prevention and research,” a Stanford spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said, “We have been in discussions with attorneys for FTX debtors to recover these gifts and will return the funds in their entirety.”

In a lawsuit filed by FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried is accused of funneling millions of dollars from the company’s funds to enrich his parents.

In the lawsuit, Barbara Fried and Joe Bankman are accused of “fraudulently transferring and misappropriating” funds.

His employer, Stanford University, received more than $5.5 million in donations from FTX Group, according to the lawsuit.

According to the lawsuit, they either knew or ignored red flags that indicated their son and his business partners were “orchestrating a vast fraudulent scheme.”

The lawyers representing Bankman and Fried called the lawsuit’s claims “completely false” and “an attempt to intimidate Joe and Barbara and undermine the jury process just days before their child’s trial.”

There has been no criminal charge brought against Bankman or Fried.

FTX went bankrupt last November after questions about its finances shook crypto markets and caused a sudden, massive withdrawal of customer funds. A federal investigation is now underway into the company, which prosecutors have called one of the largest financial frauds in US history.