Alleged Mango Markets Exploiter Eisenberg Is Working to Negotiate Bail Following First NY Court Hearing

Mango Markets crypto trader and alleged manipulator Avraham Eisenberg waived bail at his first hearing in U.S. District Court in New York on Thursday.

The 27-year-old will stay in jail until at least Feb. 14.

In October, Eisenberg revealed himself to be part of the group that exploited the Solana-based decentralized finance (DeFi) lending protocol Mango Markets for $114 million. After pulling off the heist – which Eisenberg described on Twitter as both legal and a "highly profitable trading strategy" – he returned $67 million to preempt the Mango Markets decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) from suing him in civil court.

The gambit didn't work. Eisenberg is currently being sued by Mango Labs for the remaining $47 million, and he's been indicted on three criminal offenses including commodities fraud, commodities manipulation, and wire fraud.

Eisenberg was arrested in Puerto Rico in the early evening of Dec. 26, and was held there until Wednesday, when he was transferred to New York. Eisenberg's lawyer, Brian Klein, told U.S. Magistrate Judge Jennifer Willis that his client was tired from his travels, which included a stopover in Oklahoma.

"He didn't get a lot of sleep last night," Klein said.

Eisenberg, wearing a canary-yellow jumpsuit and ankle shackles, sat slouched in his seat next to Klein and occasionally ran his hands through his hair. Eisenberg's parents were also present.

UPDATE (Feb. 3, 2023, 00:26 UTC): Adds additional detail, clarifies headline.