On Thursday, Ryan Salame, former CEO of the Bahamian-based cryptocurrency exchange FTX, pleaded guilty before Judge Lewis Kaplan in the Southern District of New York to criminal charges associated with the collapse of the exchange.
These charges included conspiracy to make illegal political contributions and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business.
Salame declared that he made personal donations to initiatives backed by Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) through funds provided by Alameda Research, which were classified as loans.
According to US Attorney Damian Williams, Salame “agreed to advance the interests of FTX, Alameda Research and his associates through an illegal political influence campaign and through an unlicensed money transmitting business, which helped FTX grow faster while operating outside the law.”
In addition to forfeiting more than $1.5 billion, Salame must repay $5.6 million to the Southern District and an extra $6 million before sentencing in March 2024. He will give up his Porsche and other properties, including two Massachusetts-based houses, to the authorities in order to cover these sums.
Two days before FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022, Salame had already alerted local authorities to potential fraud.
