In Brief FTX founder convicted of defrauding cr yptocurrency customers

NEW YORK - FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried's spectacular rise and fall in the cryptocurrency industry - a journey that included his testimony before Congress, a Super Bowl advertisement and dreams of a future run for president - hit a new bottom Thursday when a New York jury convicted him of fraud in a scheme that cheated customers and investors of at least $10 billion. After the monthlong trial, jurors rejected Bankman-Fried's claim during four days on the witness stand in Manhattan federal court that he never committed fraud or meant to cheat customers before FTX, once the world's second-largest crypto exchange, collapsed into bankruptcy a year ago. "His crimes caught up to him. His crimes have been exposed," Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon told the jury of the onetime billionaire just before they were read the law by Judge Lewis A. Kaplan and began deliberations. Sassoon said Bankman-Fried turned his customers' accounts into his "personal piggy bank" as up to $14 billion disappeared. She urged jurors to reject Bankman-Fried's insistence when he testified over three days that he never committed fraud or plotted to steal from customers, investors and lenders and didn't realize his companies were at least $10 billion in debt until October 2022. Bankman-Fried was required to stand and face the jury as guilty verdicts on all seven counts were read. He kept his hands clasped tightly in front of him. When he sat down after the reading, he kept his head tilted down for several minutes. After the judge set a sentencing date of March 28, Bankman-Fried's parents moved to the front row behind him. His father put his arm around his wife. As Bankman-Fried was led out of the courtroom, he looked back and nodded toward his mother, who nodded back and then became emotional, wiping her hand across her face after he left the room.

- Associated Press

U.S. applications for jobless benefits inch higher but remain at historically healthy levels

The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits inched up last week but remains low by historical standards, even with the Federal Reserve's aggressive interest rate hikes meant to cool the economy and taper lingering inflation. Unemployment claims rose by 5,000 to 217,000 for the week ending Oct. 28, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Jobless claim applications are seen as representative of the number of layoffs in a given week.

Overall, 1.82 million people were collecting unemployment benefits the week that ended Oct. 21, about 35,000 more than the previous week.

- Associated Press

Cedar Fair and Six Flags will merge to create a playtime powerhouse in North America

Cedar Fair and Six Flags are merging, creating an expansive amusement park operator with operations spread across 17 U.S. states and three countries. The combined company will include 27 amusement parks, 15 water parks and nine resort properties in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. The company's newly formed board will include six directors from Cedar Fair and six directors from Six Flags. The business will be headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, and will keep significant finance and administrative operations in Sandusky, Ohio, where Cedar Fair is based.

- Associated Press

UAW members at the first Ford plant to go on strike approve the new contract

DETROIT - Autoworkers at the first Ford factory to go on strike have voted overwhelmingly in favor of a tentative contract agreement reached with the company. Members of Local 900 at the Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan, west of Detroit voted 81% in favor of the four year-and-eight month deal, according to Facebook postings by local members on Thursday. Two union officials confirmed the accuracy of the percentage. Neither wanted to be identified because the vote totals had not been made public. About 3,300 UAW members went on strike at the plant Sept. 15 after the union's contract with Ford expired. They remained on the picket lines until Oct. 25, when the union announced the tentative deal with Ford. Voting at Ford will continue until Nov. 17.

- Associated Press