Bankman-Fried faces judgment in New York

It’s the biggest fraud trial since Bernie Madoff bilked tens of billions of dollars from New York’s wealthiest denizens in an audacious Ponzi scheme. Last week, the much-anticipated trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the cryptocurrency pioneer, got under way, in a hearing that many regard as a proxy trial of the industry itself.

The charges against Bankman-Fried, which include wire fraud, money laundering and five counts of conspiracy, could lead to decades in prison if he ...