The former boss of one of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges has been charged with defrauding investors out of $1.8bn.

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, has been charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

He was arrested in the Bahamas after authorities received formal notice that separate criminal charges had been filed against him in the US.

The 30-year-old, whose net worth peaked at $26bn, ran the firm from the island until he stepped down as chief executive last month.