World News: The Daily Money: FTX founder pleads not guilty to fraud

ALL THE MONEY NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW

Wednesday, January 4

Happy Hump Day! It's Bailey Schulz here with today's headlines.

First off, let's talk cashless payments. Research shows that forgoing paper money is more than just convenient – it's also reducing the number of bank robberies.

A new financial report shows the number of bank robberies in Denmark, a near-cashless country, dipped to zero last year, down from just one bank robbery in 2021. Two decades ago, there were 222, according to data from Finance Denmark, an industry group for lenders.

Only 12% of payments in physical shops in Denmark were made by cash in 2021, according to the Danish Central Bank.

Meanwhile, in the U.S. – where more consumers rely on cash – there were 1,724 bank robberies in 2021.

Sam Bankman-Fried pleads not guilty to fraud

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to allegations he misappropriated billions of dollars on his cryptocurrency exchange.

The 30-year-old has been accused of illegally commingling FTX funds with Alameda Research LLC, another company he controlled, to fund luxury real estate purchases and other personal expenses. Prosecutors charge that an estimated $8 billion in customer funds is missing.

Bankman-Fried was released shortly before Christmas Day on $250 million bond.

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About The Daily Money

Each weekday, The Daily Money delivers the best consumer news from USA TODAY. We break down financial news and provide the TLDR version: how decisions by the Federal Reserve, government and companies impact you.